Ivory Coast

This article is about the West African country. For other uses, see Ivory Coast (disambiguation).

Republic of Côte d'Ivoire
  • République de Côte d'Ivoire (French)
  • Kɔdiwari Jamana (Dyula)
Motto: 'Union – Discipline – Travail' (French)
'Unity – Discipline – Work'
Anthem: L'Abidjanaise
(English: "Song of Abidjan")
CapitalYamoussoukro
6°51′N 5°18′W / 6.850°N 5.300°W / 6.850; -5.300
Largest cityAbidjan
Official languagesFrench
Vernacular
languages
Ethnic groups
(2021 census)[1]
Religion
(2021 census)[1]
Demonym(s)
GovernmentUnitary presidential republic
• President
Alassane Ouattara
Tiémoko Meyliet Koné
Robert Beugré Mambé
LegislatureParliament of Ivory Coast
• Upper house
Senate
• Lower house
National Assembly
History
• Republic established
4 December 1958
• Independence from France
7 August 1960
Area
• Total
322,462 km2 (124,503 sq mi) (68th)
• Water (%)
1.4[2]
Population
• July 2023 estimate
30,900,000[3] (49th)
• December 2021 census
29,389,150[4]
• Density
91.1/km2 (235.9/sq mi) (139th)
GDP (PPP)2023 estimate
• Total
Increase $202.647 billion[5] (78th)
• Per capita
Increase $6,960[5] (138th)
GDP (nominal)2023 estimate
• Total
Increase $79.430 billion[5] (84th)
• Per capita
Increase $2,728[5] (141st)
Gini (2021)Positive decrease 35.3[6]
medium inequality
HDI (2022)Decrease 0.534[7]
low (166th)
CurrencyWest African CFA franc (XOF)
Time zoneUTC±00:00 (GMT)
Date formatdd/mm/yyyy
Drives onright
Calling code+225
ISO 3166 codeCI
Internet TLD.ci
  1. Including approximately 130,000 Lebanese and 14,000 French people.

Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire[a] and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is the port city of Abidjan. It borders Guinea to the northwest, Liberia to the west, Mali to the northwest, Burkina Faso to the northeast, Ghana to the east, and the Atlantic Ocean's Gulf of Guinea to the south. With 30.9 million inhabitants in 2023, Ivory Coast is the third-most populous country in West Africa.[3] Its official language is French, and indigenous languages are also widely used, including Bété, Baoulé, Dyula, Dan, Anyin, and Cebaara Senufo. In total, there are around 78 different languages spoken in Ivory Coast. The country has a religiously diverse population, including numerous followers of Islam, Christianity, and traditional faiths often entailing animism.[10][1]

Before its colonization, Ivory Coast was home to several states, including Gyaaman, the Kong Empire, and Baoulé. The area became a protectorate of France in 1843 and was consolidated as a French colony in 1893 amid the Scramble for Africa. It achieved independence in 1960, led by Félix Houphouët-Boigny, who ruled the country until 1993. Relatively stable by regional standards, Ivory Coast established close political-economic ties with its West African neighbours while maintaining close relations with the West, especially France. Its stability was diminished by a coup d'état in 1999 and two civil wars—first between 2002 and 2007[11] and again during 2010–2011. It adopted a new constitution in 2016.[12]

Ivory Coast is a republic with strong executive power vested in its president. Through the production of coffee and cocoa, it was an economic powerhouse in West Africa during the 1960s and 1970s, then experienced an economic crisis in the 1980s, contributing to a period of political and social turmoil that extended until 2011. Ivory Coast has experienced again high economic growth since the return of peace and political stability in 2011. From 2012 to 2023, the economy grew by an average of 7.1% per year in real terms, the second-fastest rate of economic growth in Africa and fourth-fastest rate in the world.[13] In 2023, Ivory Coast had the second-highest GDP per capita in West Africa, behind Cape Verde.[14] Despite this, as of the most recent survey in 2016, 46.1% of the population continues to be affected by multidimensional poverty.[15] In 2020, Ivory Coast was the world's largest exporter of cocoa beans and had high levels of income for its region.[16] The economy still relies heavily on agriculture, with smallholder cash-crop production predominating.[2]

  1. ^ a b c "RECENSEMENT GENERAL DE LA POPULATION ET DE L'HABITAT 2021 RESULTATS GLOBAUX DEFINITIFS" (PDF). Institut National de la Statistique (INS) (in French). October 2022. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 August 2023. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Côte d'Ivoire". The World Factbook. CIA Directorate of Intelligence. 30 March 2022. Archived from the original on 9 January 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  3. ^ a b Population Reference Bureau. "2023 World Population Data Sheet" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 February 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  4. ^ Institut National de la Statistique de Côte d'Ivoire. "RGPH 2021 Résultats globaux" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d "World Economic Outlook Database, October 2023 Edition. (CI)". IMF.org. International Monetary Fund. 10 October 2023. Archived from the original on 3 December 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  6. ^ "Gini Index coefficient". The World Factbook. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  7. ^ "Human Development Report 2021/2022" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 8 September 2022. Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 October 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
  8. ^ "Côte d'Ivoire". Cambridge Dictionary: English Dictionary. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  9. ^ "Cote d'Ivoire definition". Dictionary.com. Archived from the original on 23 July 2015. Retrieved 23 May 2014.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference :religions2021 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ "Loi n° 2000-513 du 1er août 2000 portant Constitution de la République de Côte d'Ivoire" (PDF). Journal Officiel de la République de Côte d'Ivoire (in French). 42 (30): 529–538. 3 August 2000. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 March 2009.,
  12. ^ "Ivory Coast backs new constitution in landslide vote, opposition cries foul". 2 November 2016. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
  13. ^ IMF. "World Economic Outlook database: October 2023". Archived from the original on 19 February 2024. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  14. ^ IMF. "World Economic Outlook database: October 2023". Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  15. ^ "Multidimensional Poverty Index 2023 Côte d'Ivoire" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme Human Development Reports. 2023. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  16. ^ "Ivory Coast country profile". BBC News. 18 November 2020. Archived from the original on 4 May 2020. Retrieved 1 June 2021.


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