Background: Close ties to France since independence in 1960 the development of cocoa production for export and foreign investment made Cote d'Ivoire one of the most prosperous of the tropical African states but did not protect it from political turmoil. In December 1999 a military coup - the first ever in Cote d'Ivoire's history - overthrew the government. Junta leader Robert GUEI blatantly rigged elections held in late 2000 and declared himself the winner. Popular protest forced him to step aside and brought runner-up Laurent GBAGBO into power. Ivorian dissidents and disaffected members of the military launched a failed coup attempt in September 2002. Rebel forces claimed the northern half of the country and in January 2003 were granted ministerial positions in a unity government under the auspices of the Linas-Marcoussis Peace Accord. President GBAGBO and rebel forces resumed implementation of the peace accord in December 2003 after a three-month stalemate but issues that sparked the civil war such as land reform and grounds for citizenship remain unresolved. The central government has yet to exert control over the northern regions and tensions remain high between GBAGBO and opposition leaders. Several thousand French and West African troops remain in Cote d'Ivoire to maintain peace and facilitate the disarmament demobilization and rehabilitation process.

Geographic coordinates: 8 00 N 5 00 W

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 322,460 km²
Land: 318,000 km²
Water: 4,460 km²
Comparative: slightly larger than New Mexico

Land boundaries
Total: 3,110 km
Border countries: (5) Burkina Faso 584 km; , Ghana 668 km; , Guinea 610 km; , Liberia 716 km; , Mali 532 km

Coastline: 515 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Continental shelf: 200 nm

Climate: tropical along coast semiarid in far north; three seasons - warm and dry (November to March) hot and dry (March to May) hot and wet (June to October)

Terrain: mostly flat to undulating plains; mountains in northwest

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Gulf of Guinea 0 m
Extremes highest point: Mont Nimba 1,752 m

Natural resources: petroleum natural gas diamonds manganese iron ore cobalt bauxite copper gold nickel tantalum silica sand clay cocoa beans coffee palm oil hydropower

Land use
Arable land: 10.23%
Permanent crops: 11.16%
Other: 78.61% (2005)

Irrigated land: 730 km² (2003)

Natural hazards: coast has heavy surf and no natural harbors; during the rainy season torrential flooding is possible

Geography
Note: most of the inhabitants live along the sandy coastal region; apart from the capital area the forested interior is sparsely populated

Population
Note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.)
Growth rate: 2.03% (2006 est.)
Below poverty line: 37% (1995)

Nationality
Noun: Ivoirian
Adjective: Ivoirian

Ethnic groups: Akan 42.1% Voltaiques or Gur 17.6% Northern Mandes 16.5% Krous 11% Southern Mandes 10% other 2.8% (includes 130,000 Lebanese and 14,000 French) (1998)

Languages: French (official) 60 native dialects with Dioula the most widely spoken

Religions
Note: the majority of foreigners (migratory workers) are Muslim (70%) and Christian (20%)

Age structure
0-14 years: 40.8% (male 3,546,674/female 3,653,990)
15-64 years: 56.4% (male 5,024,575/female 4,939,677)
65 years and over: 2.8% (male 238,793/female 251,134) (2006 est.)

Median age
Total: 19.2 years
Male: 19.4 years
Female: 18.9 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate: 2.03% (2006 est.)

Birth rate: 35.11 births/1000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate: 14.84 deaths/1000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1000 population (2006 est.)

Environment
Current issues: deforestation (most of the country's forests - once the largest in West Africa - have been heavily logged); water pollution from sewage and industrial and agricultural effluents
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male/female
Under 15 years: 0.97 male/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male/female
65 years and over: 0.95 male/female
Total population: 1 male/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 89.11 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 105.73 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 71.99 deaths/1000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 48.82 years
Male: 46.24 years
Female: 51.48 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate: 4.5 children born/woman (2006 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 7% (2003 est.)
People living with hivaids: 570,000 (2003 est.)
Deaths: 47,000 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases
Degree of risk: very high
Food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Vectorborne diseases: malaria, yellow fever, and others are high risks in some locations
Water contact: schistosomiasis (2005)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 50.9%
Male: 57.9%
Female: 43.6% (2003 est.)

Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Cote d'Ivoire
Conventional short form: Cote d'Ivoire
Local long form: Republique de Cote d'Ivoire
Local short form: Cote d'Ivoire
Former: Ivory Coast

Government type: republic; multiparty presidential regime established 1960

Capital
Name: Yamoussoukro
Geographic coordinates: 5 19 N, 4 02 W
Time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Note: although Yamoussoukro has been the official capital since 1983, Abidjan remains the commercial and administrative center; the US, like other countries, maintains its Embassy in Abidjan

Administrative divisions: 19 regions; Agneby Bafing Bas-Sassandra Denguele Dix-Huit Montagnes Fromager Haut-Sassandra Lacs Lagunes Marahoue Moyen-Cavally Moyen-Comoe N'zi-Comoe Savanes Sud-Bandama Sud-Comoe Vallee du Bandama Worodougou Zanzan

Independence: 7 August 1960 (from France)

National holiday: Independence Day 7 August (1960)

Constitution: new constitution adopted 4 August 2000

Legal system: based on French civil law system and customary law; judicial review in the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Laurent GBAGBO (since 26 October 2000)
Head of government: Prime Minister Charles Konan BANNY (since 7 December 2005)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (no term limits); election last held 26 October 2000 (next to be held by October 2006, after the government postponed the election); prime minister appointed by the president
Election results: Laurent GBAGBO elected president; percent of vote - Laurent GBAGBO 59.4%, Robert GUEI 32.7%, Francis WODIE 5.7%, other 2.2%

Legislative branch
Elections: elections last held 10 December 2000 with by-elections on 14 January 2001 (next to be held by 31 October 2006)
Election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - FPI 96, PDCI-RDA 94, RDR 5, PIT 4, other 2, independents 22, vacant 2
Note: a Senate is scheduled to be created in the next full election in 2006

Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Cour Supreme consists of four chambers: Judicial Chamber for criminal cases Audit Chamber for financial cases Constitutional Chamber for judicial review cases and Administrative Chamber for civil cases; there is no legal limit to the number of members

Political parties and leaders: Citizen's Democratic Union or UDCY [Eg Theodore MEL]; Democratic Party of Cote d'Ivoire-African Democratic Rally or PDCI-RDA [Henri Konan BEDIE]; Ivorian Popular Front or FPI [Laurent GBAGBO]; Ivorian Worker's Party or PIT [Francis WODIE]; Rally of the Republicans or RDR [Alassane OUATTARA]; Union for Democracy and Peace or UDPCI [Paul Akoto YAO]; over 20 smaller parties

International organization participation: ACCT ACP AfDB AU ECOWAS Entente FAO FZ G-24 G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICCt (signatory) ICFTU ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC IOM IPU ITU MIGA NAM OIC OIF OPCW UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UPU WADB (regional) WAEMU WCL WCO WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Daouda DIABATE
In the us chancery: 3,421 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,007
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 797-0300
In the us fax: [1] (202) 244-3,088
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Aubrey HOOKS
From the us embassy: Riviera Golf 01, Abidjan
From the us mailing address: B. P. 1866, Abidjan 01
From the us telephone: [225] 20 21 09 79
From the us fax: [225] 20 22 32 59

Flag description: three equal vertical bands of orange (hoist side) white and green; similar to the flag of Ireland which is longer and has the colors reversed - green (hoist side) white and orange; also similar to the flag of Italy which is green (hoist side) white and red; design was based on the flag of France

Economy overview: Cote d'Ivoire is among the world's largest producers and exporters of coffee cocoa beans and palm oil. Consequently the economy is highly sensitive to fluctuations in international prices for these products and weather conditions. Despite government attempts to diversify the economy it is still heavily dependent on agriculture and related activities engaging roughly 68% of the population. Growth was negative in 2000-03 because of the difficulty of meeting the conditions of international donors continued low prices of key exports and severe civil war. In November 2004 the situation deteriorated when President GBAGBO's troops attacked and killed nine French peacekeeping forces and the UN imposed an arms embargo. Political turmoil damaged the economy in 2005 with fear among Ivorians spreading foreign investment shriveling French businesses and expats fleeing travel within the country falling and criminal elements that traffic in weapons and diamonds gaining ground. The government will continue to survive financially off of the sale of cocoa which represents 90% of foreign exchange earnings. Though the 2005 harvest was largely unaffected by past fighting the government will likely lose between 10% and 20% of its cocoa harvest to northern rebels who smuggle the cocoa they control to neighboring countries where cocoa prices are higher. The government remains hopeful that ongoing exploration of Cote d'Ivoire's offshore oil reserves will result in significant production that could boost daily crude output from roughly 33,000 barrels per day (b/d) to over 200,000 b/d by the end of the decade.

Real gdp purchasing power parity: $27.58 billion (2005 est.)

Real gdp growth rate: 1% (2005 est.)

Real gdp per capita: $1600 (2005 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 27.9%
Industry: 17.1%
Services: 55% (2005 est.)

Agriculture products: coffee cocoa beans bananas palm kernels corn rice manioc (tapioca) sweet potatoes sugar cotton rubber; timber

Industries: foodstuffs beverages; wood products oil refining truck and bus assembly textiles fertilizer building materials electricity ship construction and repair

Industrial production growth rate: 15% (1998 est.)

Labor force: 6.95 million (68% agricultural) (2005 est.)

Unemployment rate: 13% in urban areas (1998)

Population below poverty line: 37% (1995)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 3.1%
Highest 10: 28.8% (1995)

Distribution of family income gini index: 45.2 (1998)

Budget
Revenues: $2.434 billion
Expenditures: $2.83 billion; including capital expenditures of $420 million (2005 est.)

Public debt: 64.5% of GDP (2005 est.)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 3.9% (2005 est.)

Current account balance: $-193 million (2005 est.)

Exports: $6.49 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Commodities: cocoa coffee timber petroleum cotton bananas pineapples palm oil fish
Partners: France 18.3% US 14.1% Netherlands 11% Nigeria 8% Panama 4.4% (2005)

Imports: $4.759 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Commodities: fuel capital equipment foodstuffs
Partners: France 27.7% Nigeria 24.5% Singapore 6.6% (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $1.42 billion (2005 est.)

Debt external: $13.43 billion (2005 est.)

Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005) 528.29 (2004) 581.2 (2003) 696.99 (2002) 733.04 (2001)

Electricity
Production: 5.127 billion kWh (2003)
Consumption: 3.418 billion kWh (2003)
Exports: 1.35 billion kWh (2003)
Imports: 0 kWh (2003)

Natural gas
Production: 1.3 billion m³ (2003 est.)
Consumption: 1.3 billion m³ (2003 est.)
Exports: 0 m³ (2001 est.)
Imports: 0 m³ (2001 est.)
Proven reserves: 29.73 billion m³ (2005)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 257,900 (2004)
Mobile cellular: 2.19 million (2005)

Telephone system
General assessment: well developed by African standards but operating well below capacity
Domestic: open-wire lines and microwave radio relay; 90% digitalized
International: country code - 225; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean); 2 submarine cables (June 1999)

Internet
Country code: .ci
Hosts: 2,534 (2006)
Users: 160,000 (2005)

Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: 1.6% (2005 est.)

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; conscript service obligation - 18 months (2004)

Airports: 35 (2006)
With paved runways total: 7
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 4 (2006)
With unpaved runways total: 28
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 8
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 15
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 5 (2006)

Pipelines: condensate 109 km; gas 240 km; oil 112 km (2006)

Railways
Total: 660 km
Narrow gauge: 660 km 1.000 meter gauge
Note: an additional 622 km of this railroad extends into Burkina Faso (2005)

Roadways
Total: 80,000 km
Paved: 6,500 km
Unpaved: 73,500 km
Note: includes intercity and urban roads; another 20,000 km of dirt roads are in poor condition and 150,000 km of dirt roads are impassable (2006)

Waterways: 980 km (navigable rivers canals and numerous coastal lagoons) (2005)

Ports and terminals: Abidjan Aboisso Dabou San-Pedro

Disputes international: rebel and ethnic fighting against the central government in 2002 has spilled into neighboring states driven out foreign cocoa workers from nearby countries and in 2004 resulted in 6,000 peacekeepers deployed as part of UN Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) assisting 4,000 French troops already in-country; the Ivorian Government accuses Burkina Faso and Liberia of supporting Ivorian rebels

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees country of origin: 70,402 (Liberia)
Idps: 500,000-800,000 (2002 coup; most IDPs are in western regions) (2005)

Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis mostly for local consumption; transshipment point for Southwest and Southeast Asian heroin to Europe and occasionally to the US and for Latin American cocaine destined for Europe and South Africa; while rampant corruption and inadequate supervision leave the banking system vulnerable to money laundering the lack of a developed financial system limits the country's utility as a major money-laundering center