In order to assess the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevalence among teachers in Burkina Faso, we carried out a national survey in 336 primary and secondary schools from urban and rural areas. Among 2088 teachers who agreed to participate, 1498 (71.7%) provided urine for HIV testing. The crude prevalence of HIV among teachers was 2.8% (95% confidence interval (CI): 2.0–3.6), with no difference between teachers from primary schools (2.9%, 95%CI: 2.1–4.0) and those from secondary schools (2.5%, 95%CI: 0.5–4.5). Age- and area-standardized HIV prevalence was 1.0% (95%CI: 0.4–1.2) in male teachers, 2.5 times lower than among men in the general population (as assessed from a concomitant Demographic Health Survey), and it was 3.5% (95%CI: 2.5–5.2) in female teachers, 1.7 times higher than in Demographic Health Survey women.

This finding calls for the implementation of specific HIV prevention program in the education sector targeting women more specifically.