A new round of legal action against local and foreign companies
accused of dumping toxic waste in Côte d'Ivoire which killed
16 people in 2006 could have serious political and commercial
repercussions (AC Vol 47 No 20). Customs officials and exec...
Leaders send out mixed signals on whether elections will take place this year
Côte d'Ivoire's Public Prosecutor, Raymond Tchimou,
is leading a crackdown on corruption in the cocoa industry, which
accounts for 40% of world supply. On 13 June, Tchimou announced
the findings of an enquiry ordered by President Laurent Gbagbo t...
The wealth of Côte d'Ivoire's defunct founding father,
Félix Houphouët-Boigny, was on display at an
auction in the historic French town of Fontainebleau on 29 June.
The sale of exquisite, prized pieces of furniture, art works and
tap...
Postponed elections and continuing violence cast a long shadow over hopes for peace
Our accord is a model for all, President Gbagbo tells the UN – but the hardest test is yet to come as election preparations begin
When the war broke out in 2002, those soldiers who defected
from the national army to the rebels were rewarded by promotion;
they now insist they should keep their higher ranks in the planned,
post-conflict, unified army. Loyalists do not accept this. ...
Chocolate sales could dive after a report that Ivorian rebels
may earn more from taxes on cocoa beans than from 'blood diamonds'.
One of the best tests of the peace accords is whether they prompt
the African Development Bank to return to Abidjan. It moved to
Tunisia in June 2003, after the Ivorian civil war erupted
in 2002. The ADB has since dodged a decision by annually extendin...
Rapidly rising oil earnings could help to restore Côte
d'Ivoire's status as the economic giant of Francophone West Africa.
| 
Alternatively, 
Sign up to receive fortnightly email alerts listing the latest headlines, with extra news and commentaries from Africa Confidential's Editor, 
Request a printed example of our fortnightly Africa Confidential newsletter