{"id":15018,"date":"2025-01-30T10:59:38","date_gmt":"2025-01-30T10:59:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/?p=15018"},"modified":"2025-01-30T10:59:38","modified_gmt":"2025-01-30T10:59:38","slug":"cote-divoire-ivory-coast","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/15018\/cote-divoire-ivory-coast\/","title":{"rendered":"C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire (Ivory Coast)"},"content":{"rendered":"

C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire (Ivory Coast), country located on the coast of western Africa. Ivory Coast has two capital cities. Yamoussoukro has been the official capital since 1983, but Abidjan remains the administrative capital and the officially designated economic capital. Most countries maintain an embassy in Abidjan. The official language of C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is French. French is the primary language used in government, education, and business, although there are over 60 local languages spoken across the country. Before colonialism, Ivory Coast was made up of numerous kingdoms including the Kong, Bouna, Bounkani, Senufo, Malinke and Baule among others. The country has a diverse ethnic makeup. C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is home to more than 60 ethnic groups, with the Baoul\u00e9 being the largest ethnic group, followed by the B\u00e9t\u00e9, Senufo, and Malinke.<\/p>\n

The country gained independence from France on August 7, 1960. After years of French colonial rule, C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire became a sovereign nation. Ivory Coast takes its name from the intensive ivory trade that took place in the region from the 15th to 17th centuries. However, the country officially changed its name to Cote d\u2019Ivoire in 1986. For more than three decades after its independence from France, Cote d\u2019Ivoire or Ivory Coast was known for its religious and ethnic harmony, as well as its well-developed economy. C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is rich in natural resources. The country has significant deposits of gold, diamonds, iron ore, and oil, which contribute to its economy.<\/p>\n

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Flag of Ivory Coast in front of the blue sky<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The economy of C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is largely based on agriculture. C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is one of the world\u2019s leading producers of cocoa beans, coffee, and palm oil. After independence, Ivory Coast enjoyed economic and political stability for several decades. During the 1980s and 1990s, Abidjan was known as the \u201cthe Paris of West Africa\u201d and its business district as \u201cthe Manhattan of West Africa\u201d due to the city\u2019s impressive skyline and location beside a lagoon. It was also considered one of Africa\u2019s principal cities in terms of fashion, culture, and standard of living. Ivory Coast is the world\u2019s largest producer and exporter of cocoa beans, exporting over $3.8 billion worth of beans in 2019.<\/p>\n

However, C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire\u2019s monetary unit is the CFA (Communaut\u00e9 Financi\u00e8re Africaine) franc. From independence the CFA was pegged to the French franc; beginning in 2002, it was tied to the euro. The Central Bank of the States of West Africa (Banque Centrale des \u00c9tats de l\u2019Afrique de l\u2019Ouest) is the bank of issue for member states including Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo as well as C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire. Many foreign and domestic banks, credit institutions, insurance companies, and real estate agencies exist in the country, most of which have headquarters in Abidjan. The city is also home to a regional stock exchange, Bourse R\u00e9gionale des Valeurs Mobili\u00e8res, that serves the French-speaking countries of western Africa.<\/p>\n

C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is home to four UNESCO World Heritage Sites. One of which is the Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve, which it shares with Guinea. The reserve is rich in flora and fauna. The reserve is home to the Nimba Range, a chain of mountains that culminate at Mount Nimba. At 1,752m (5,748ft), it is the highest mountain in both Ivory Coast and Guinea. Also, the famous UNESCO-listed Ta\u00ef National Park is located in C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire. Ta\u00ef National Park is known for its rich biodiversity and is home to various endangered species, including pygmy hippos, chimpanzees, and African elephants. While the UNESCO-listed Como\u00e9 National Park is one of the largest protected areas in West Africa. It has an area of approximately 11,500 square kilometers (4,440 square miles) and is known for its plant diversity. Additionally, the UNESCO-listed historic town of Grand-Bassam was the French colonial capital until a yellow fever epidemic broke out in 1896, causing the French to relocate the capital. The town was a popular resort until a 2016 terrorist attack killed 16 people, many of them foreigners.<\/p>\n

The national dish of C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is Atti\u00e9k\u00e9 with grilled fish or chicken. Atti\u00e9k\u00e9 is a popular local dish made from cassava and is often served with grilled fish or chicken. Also, the country has a vibrant music and dance culture. C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is known for its lively music genres such as coup\u00e9-d\u00e9cal\u00e9 and zouglou, which have gained popularity throughout Africa. C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is known for its vibrant traditional attire. The traditional clothing of C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire includes colorful fabrics and patterns that reflect the diverse cultural heritage of the country.<\/p>\n

Islam is followed by about two-fifths of the population, found primarily in the northwest and in Abidjan. About one-third of the population is Christian, mostly Roman Catholic or Evangelical. Also present in the country are followers of the Harrist faith, a syncretic religion indigenous to C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire. Founded by William Wade Harris during World War I, it claims an estimated 100,000 adherents in the country. According to the 2021 census, it is professed by 42.5% of the total population. As of the late 1980s, only the most devout Muslims in Ivory Coast prayed, fasted, and gave alms as required by strict tenets of Islam, and only the wealthiest performed the hajj. The massive immigration of Muslims from the Muslim majority countries Burkina Faso and Mali helped to increase the number of Muslims substantially.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire (Ivory Coast), country located on the coast of western Africa. Ivory Coast has two capital cities. Yamoussoukro has been the official capital since 1983, but Abidjan remains the administrative capital and the officially designated economic capital. Most countries maintain an embassy in Abidjan. The official language of C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is French. French is the primary language used in government, education, and business, although there are over 60 local languages spoken across the country. Before colonialism, Ivory Coast was made up of numerous kingdoms including the Kong, Bouna, Bounkani, Senufo, Malinke and Baule among others. The country has a diverse ethnic makeup. C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire is home to more than 60 ethnic groups, with the Baoul\u00e9 being the largest ethnic group, followed by the B\u00e9t\u00e9, Senufo, and Malinke.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15059,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":16,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"subtitle":"","format":"standard","override":[{"template":"1","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"right-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"top","share_float_style":"share-monocrhome","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_reading_time":"0","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_post_related":"1","show_inline_post_related":"1"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0","source_name":"Qiraat Africa"},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[2794,27],"tags":[1230,407],"class_list":["post-15018","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-country","category-west-africa","tag-cote-divoire","tag-ivory-coast"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15018","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15018"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15018\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15059"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15018"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15018"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/qiraatafrican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15018"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}