The Report: Cote d'Ivoire 2017
Cote d’Ivoire has seen rapid growth since a decade-long bout of civil unrest ended in 2011. The largest economy in UEMOA, and the third largest in ECOWAS, the country accounts for more than 30% of the eight-member bloc’s GDP.
Country Profile
Ethnically, linguistically and religiously diverse, Côte d’Ivoire is a West African nation with a rich culture. Once one of the continent’s leading economic powerhouses, the country was afflicted by civil war for much of the past 10 years. However, peace has largely prevailed since April 2011, and the nation is now looking to reclaim its former glory. The country benefits from a wide range of commodities that have helped underwrite its growth. Agriculture is a key economic sector, with cocoa being the most important crop and Côte d’Ivoire the largest producer globally. The country is also a minor net exporter of crude oil with proven reserves of around 100m barrels, the 64th-largest in the world. This chapter contains a viewpoint from President Alassane Dramane Ouattara and interviews with Marcel de Souza, President, Commission of ECOWAS; Pankaj Patel, President, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry; Carlos Lopes, Professor, University of Cape Town, and Visiting Fellow, Oxford Martin School.
Explore chapterEconomy
Progress on several major infrastructure projects helped sustain Côte d’Ivoire’s sixth consecutive year of solid economic growth in 2016. Works planned under the 2016-20 National Development Plan will be a key driver of growth and are set to play a pivotal part in the country’s bid to achieve emerging-economy status before the end of this decade. The economy has benefitted from prudent fiscal policies, monetary stability, rising public spending and structural reforms aimed at improving the business climate and encouraging public-private partnerships. However, there are some economic headwinds – including fragilities in the banking sector, regional inequalities and a continued dependence on commodity exports. This chapter contains interviews with Jean-Marie Ackah, President, General Confederation of Businesses of Côte d’Ivoire; Emmanuel Esmel Essis, Director-General, Investment Promotion Agency of Côte d’Ivoire; and Akinwumi Adesina, President, African Development Bank.
Explore chapterBanking
The banking sector has seen sustained double-digit growth since 2011, reinforcing Côte d’Ivoire’s role as the UEMOA bloc’s primary banking centre. The potential for continuing that growth is significant, as is the impact a larger financial sector would have on the national economy. That said, there are weaknesses in terms of sector performance with regard to its ability to lend, in particular. To address this, the authorities are currently steering a course of ambitious restructuring, namely the privatisation of low-performing public banks, to further clean up the sector. The restructuring plan’s primary goal is to make banking more profitable, as well as increase retail and corporate lending. This chapter contains an interview with Tiémoko Meyliet Koné, Governor, BCEAO; and a roundtable with Daouda Coulibaly, Managing Director, Société Ivoirienne de Banque; Charles Daboiko, Managing Director, Ecobank Côte d’Ivoire; and Jean-Louis Menann Kouamé, CEO, BICICI.
Explore chapterCapital Markets
Côte d’Ivoire’s capital markets are closely linked to the broader fortunes of the eight-state UEMOA of which it is a member. The country is also home to West Africa’s regional stock exchange, the Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières, one of the fastest-growing stock exchanges on the continent. On the back of strong macroeconomic growth, equity activity has been increasing steadily over the past five years, with a strong rise in the volume of transactions. Nonetheless, the bourse continues to face challenges common to emerging and frontier market exchanges around the world, including liquidity issues. This chapter contains interviews with Edoh Kossi Aménounvé, Managing Director, Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières; and Kadi Fadika-Coulibaly, Managing Director, Hudson & Cie.
Explore chapterInsurance
The insurance sector in Côte d’Ivoire has been posting solid growth figures for years. The pickup in the country’s economy after 2012 has made the sector increasingly attractive, prompting the arrival of new competitors aiming to establish a foothold in West Africa’s biggest insurance market. The influx of foreign players, coupled with regional regulatory changes, are poised to transform what was previously a highly concentrated sector ¬– a handful of operators command over 80% of the annual volume of premiums – with a large number of providers, including many small and undercapitalised insurers, still competing fiercely for market share. Positive economic developments will continue to drive insurance growth, while recently implemented regulatory changes are sure to lead to market consolidation over the coming years. This chapter contains an interview with Thierry Labbé, Head of Francophone Africa, Gras Savoye Willis Towers Watson.
Explore chapterIndustry & Mining
Once considered West Africa’s industrial powerhouse, Côte d’Ivoire’s manufacturing sector was badly affected by a decade of political unrest that curtailed further expansion. However, this is gradually being reversed as political stability and consecutive years of economic growth are enhancing the environment for industrial development and helping to diversify the country’s production base. Putting the right fiscal and legislative incentives in place will be vital for the authorities as they look to increase local processing. Besides for strengthening traditionally strategic industries, the attention to new sectors, such as mining, are set to help to diversify the economy, create employment and, in the case of mining specifically, channel new development money into communities. This chapter contains interviews with Ramzi Omais, Chairman and CEO, SOTICI; and Kadjo Kouamé, Managing Director, Société d’Etat pour le Développement Minier de Côte d’Ivoire.
Explore chapterEnergy
With growing demand for electricity both at home and abroad, Côte d’Ivoire’s energy network is in need of diversification and further initiatives to expand power production. With the Council of Ministers adopting six decrees aimed at liberalising the electricity sector in October 2016, the government is counting on private investment to reach its goals. The push for oil exploration and production, coupled with recent discoveries, is attracting renewed investment into Côte d’Ivoire’s energy sector and is likely to contribute to growth in oil production on many levels. The sizeable domestic gas deficit is also stimulating investment in gas exploration and transportation infrastructure.
Explore chapterAgriculture
Agriculture has been the largest single economic growth driver in Côte d’Ivoire in the years following independence, supported by a diverse selection of cash crops that have benefitted from strong government support and promotion, fertile land, a favourable climate and growing conditions, and abundant water resources. Agricultural development has taken priority in recent years, as evidenced by increased public spending and development of a long-term sector strategy emphasising innovation, land allocation and crop diversification. Value-added processing, particularly in the powerhouse cocoa sector, is also a major priority for the authorities, although drought and recent political unrest could weigh on production and investment.
Explore chapterTransport
After missing out on needed maintenance and expansion work over the past decade, Côte d’Ivoire’s transport infrastructure is receiving some overdue attention. Expansion of transport networks across the country has become imperative, with a headline growth rate of 8.4% in 2016, and increasing urbanisation putting pressure on existing networks. Increased congestion, from both higher domestic and international trading, is putting added strain on roads, ports and railroad systems. However, recent reforms have bolstered the transport sector’s physical infrastructure, including the growing use of the public-private partnerships as a means to attract private financing and management into strategic infrastructure such as ports, airports and land transport routes. This chapter contains interviews with Ibrahima Koné, Director-General, Quipux Afrique; and Abdoulaye Coulibaly, Chairman, Aeria & Air Côte d’Ivoire.
Explore chapterSan Pedro
While Abidjan may serve as Côte d’Ivoire’s commercial centre, San Pedro – 350 km to the west – is the key gateway for the country’s exports. The city, which is situated in the San Pedro Region of the Bas-Sassandra District along the Gulf of Guinea, ranks as Côte d’Ivoire’s second-largest city in terms of economic activity. Growth has been driven in large part by the construction of a deepwater port, which has emerged as the main portal for the country’s primary export earner, cocoa. However, a number of other sectors, including cash crop processing and mining in the northern and western stretches of the country, have also helped boost activity in the region.
Explore chapterConstruction & Real Estate
As Côte d’Ivoire continues to recover from the instability of the previous decade, construction remains a key driver of growth, with a swath of new projects either launched or planned in various sectors, including several that form part of the government’s main infrastructure programmes. There have been some bottlenecks, however, particularly in terms of project delivery. The outlook for the short and medium term is encouraging, with the government stressing capital spending and the economy posting strong figures. As is the case throughout the region, real estate demand in Côte d’Ivoire is generally high, surpassing existing offerings in most, if not all, segments. Thus, public and private initiatives to expand real estate offerings are likely to continue. Progress on the government’s large-scale social housing programme has been slow, but action on home loans may help it pick up speed. The development of the new industrial areas will also provide space for firms to set up shop. This chapter contains interviews with Stefan Heeb, Former CEO Côte d’Ivoire-Guinea, LafargeHolcim; and Kinapara Coulibaly, Director-General, National Office for Technical and Development Studies.
Explore chapterICT
With high headline growth opening up new business opportunities, Côte D’Ivoire’s telecoms sector continues to grow on the back of newly inaugurated 4G networks, expanding coverage and a series of regulatory reforms, which include the revocation of some licences for smaller operators and the issuance of a licence for a new entrant. These moves are helping to reshape a market and sector that had previously been hampered by high competition, limited infrastructure and inconsistent service. In parallel, a government-led plan to expand broadband infrastructure across the country is helping to improve fixed and backbone connectivity. Improving conditions for domestic IT companies will help ensure that the expansion taking place in the sector can be maintained for the coming years. This chapter contains an interview with Bruno Nabagné Koné, Minister of Communications, Digital Economy and the Post.
Explore chapterTourism
With a varied offer and clear development potential, Côte d’Ivoire is attracting large sums of capital investment to its travel and tourism industry. While business tourism and domestic spending continue to represent the largest shares of sector contributions to GDP, there are ambitions to develop leisure tourism and increase international tourist arrivals in coming years. However, additional investment in transport infrastructure and tourism accommodation is required to facilitate access to tourist sites and improve the quality of accommodation in line with international norms. This chapter contains an interview with Georges Philippe Ezaley, Mayor of Grand-Bassam.
Explore chapterEducation
Côte d’Ivoire is investing in achieving sustainable high growth levels, for which it requires a strong education sector. The government has its eyes set on expanding basic education access, improving education quality and governance, and enhancing the link between education and the job market. In addition to ongoing initiatives, the government has set out a series of actions, outlined in the 2016-20 National Development Plan, under which it allocates an ambitious indicative budget totalling close to CFA5trn (€7.5bn) for education, including public and private contributions. This chapter contains an interview with Saliou Touré, President, International University of Grand Bassam.
Explore chapterHealth
Côte d’Ivoire is setting the health sector back on its feet after a decade of armed conflict and political division. As the 2012-15 National Health Development Plan reached its closing period, progress seemed clear and the country was geared towards rebuilding and constructing health infrastructure and facilities, training and hiring personnel, setting new standards and, ultimately, working to provide widespread health care coverage at an affordable cost. The next iteration of the plan, covering the 2016-20 period, has allocated significant funds for the improvement of health care in the country, with the private sector likely to continue playing a primary role via investments in the form of public-private partnerships. This chapter contains an interview with Ange Désiré Yapi, Director-General, Nouvelle Pharmacie de la Santé Publique de Côte d’Ivoire.
Explore chapterTax
In conjunction with PwC, OBG explores the taxation system, examining Cote d’Ivoire’s investor-friendly environment. OBG talks to Edouard Messou, Senior Partner; and Dominique Taty, Tax Partner, PwC, on the value-added tax refund mechanism.
Explore chapterLegal
OBG introduces the reader to the different aspects of the legal system in Cote d’Ivoire, in partnership with Bilé-Aka, Brizoua-Bi & Associés. OBG talks to Michel K Brizoua-Bi and Joachim Bilé-Aka, Founders, Bilé-Aka, Brizoua-Bi & Associés, on the country’s legislative evolution.
Explore chapterThe Guide
This section includes information on hotels, government and other listings, alongside useful tips for visitors on topics like currency, visas, language, communications, dress, business hours and electricity.
Explore chapterTable of Contents
There are no articles in this chapter. To view the table of contents, please open click the "View in online reader" link above.
