LONDON (Standard&Poor's) March 5, 2004--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services said today it assigned its 'B' long-term and 'B' short-term sovereign credit ratings to Burkina Faso. The outlook is stable. With this new rating, Standard&Poor's now rates 100 sovereign governments. "The ratings on Burkina Faso are constrained by its low level of development and very narrow economic base, large fiscal imbalances, and high net general government debt," said Standard&Poor's credit analyst Mame-Fatou Diagne. "These factors are balanced by strong donor support and debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative, and the benefits of Burkina Faso's membership of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU)." Burkina Faso is expected to continue meeting
