Cote D’IvoireIvory Coast

Samantha Lake

Physical Features• Cote D’Ivoire is not land-

locked; Its southern part of the country is bordered by the Gulf of Guinea.

• The climate is tropical around the coast line. The three seasons are warm-dry, hot-dry, and hot-wet.

• The vegetation it broad-leafed on the north side and needle leafed on the southern side.

• The annual average rainfall in Cote D’Ivoire is 40-80 inches.

• Two major environmental issues are the deforestation and the sewage that pollutes water.

• Some natural hazards are flooding in the rainy season and that the coast has a heavy surf with no natural harbor.

Cultural Features• French is the official

language of Cote D’Ivoire, and there are 60 native dialects, but Dioula is spoken the most.

• Religions that are practiced there are Christianity, Muslim, and native religion.

• There are six ethnic groups.

• The total population in Cote D’Ivoire is 18,373,060.

• 50.9% of the population can read and write. That is 9,351,888 people.

• Cote D’Ivoire gained independence from France in 1960.

Economic features• The primary industry

in Cote D’Ivoire is cocoa beans, the secondary is palm oil.

• The some of the natural resources there are cocoa beans, palm oil, coffee, clay, diamonds, iron ore, and natural gas.

• The GPC (average salary measured in U.S. dollars) is $1,800.

• The percent of people living in poverty is 42%. That is 7,716,685 people.

• Cote D’Ivoire has an external dept of $10.91 billion.

Political Features• Cote D’Ivoire has a

democracy with multiple parties (since the power-sharing agreement) and a president, but it is currently under mediators.

• Laurent Gbagbo became president in 2000 when his opponent, Robert Guei, fled the country due to uprisings about the election. Gbagbo is the current president.

• The government is very corrupt and measures a 2.0-2.9 out of ten; one being the most corrupt, and ten being the least corrupt.

• The citizens aren’t very free. On a scale from 1 to 40, 40 being the most free, Cote D’Ivoire got a 5.

Health Information

• The life expectancy in Cote D’Ivoire is 49 years.

• 17% of the population has HIV/AIDS. That is 3,123,420 people. About 47,000 deaths related to HIV/AIDS occur each year.

• About 86 infants die out of every 1000 born.

• There is a very high risk of catching diseases like schistosomiasis, malaria, yellow fever, Hepatitis A, and typhoid.

Safety

The following pages will hold information that supports my

safety rating for Cote D’Ivoire.

Recent Riots and Conflicts

• 2000- Fights broke out between the supporters of Gbagbo (President) and of his opponent, Ouattara, over who had really won election.

• 2001- 57 people killed due to election riots.• 2003- Rumor of people planning to assassinate

President. 19 people killed in attack of a TV building.• 2004- 120 people killed in rallies against President.• 2005- More than 100 people killed in a massacre • 2006- Violent riots broke out in streets.• 2007- Rocket attacked the Prime Minister’s plane.

Risk of Health

• The chance of catching a disease like schistosomiasis, malaria, yellow fever, Hepatitis A, and typhoid is very high.

• There are three times the number of people in Cote D’Ivoire living with HIV/AIDS than there are in the U.S.

Government Issues

• Guei pronounced himself President, but fled because of the uprisings.

• Then President Gbagbo was appointed president after he was believed to have won the election.

• The prime minister wanted the army and the rebels to de-arm before the elections in 2005.

• In the same year, a poll had to be called off.

Medical Facilities

• Adequate, but doesn't meet U.S. standards.

• Excellent doctors are available, but few speak English.

• Medical facilities are well stocked, but newer medicines aren’t present.

• Medical care is really hard to get out side of the Abidjan, a major city. Hospital

Miscellaneous issues

• The surf along the coast line is so strong that they don’t recommend swimming there, even if you are a strong swimmer.

• A child slave ship was reported of the coast of Cote D’Ivoire in 2001.

• Military sometimes gets involved in riots.

Safety Rating: 4Because:• There is high corruption and limited freeness.• There have been a lot of armed rebellions in the past 7

years that have caused a large number of deaths. • There is a very high chance of you catching a disease.• There are some good doctors, but most don’t speak

English and are sparse outside of Abidjan. Also, they aren’t as good as doctors in the U.S.

• The crime rate is high and people who are not African are targeted because of their hate of the French.

• Pollution in the water has caused several deaths.• The government is currently under mediators, but it is

improving.

This is a 4 out of 5, 1 being safe and 5 being extremely unsafe.