Thinking big

Thinking big has become a hallmark of Côte d'Ivoire. Construction, building on a grand scale, transforming the landscape, erecting bridges and towers. The tradition dates back to founding president Félix Houphouët-Boigny, who was keen to showcase the country's ambition. First came the development of the iconic Plateau district in the heart of Abidjan, followed by the famous Basilica of Our Lady of Peace in Yamoussoukro. Under Alassane Ouattara, infrastructure development is a top priority again. Since 2011, the focus has been on creating the conditions for strong growth and strengthening the country's competitiveness by building its backbone, a genuine infrastructure backbone. This is the first key to long-term growth. Abidjan is at the forefront of this effort. The megacity needs to be decongested and transformed to project an attractive soft power to investors, visitors and the entire sub-region.

Roads must also be built to connect the country. Another ambitious programme with - since 2015, more than 2,600 km of paved roads renovated or built (including 400 km of motorways). Efforts have also focused on the construction of regional hubs (Man, San-Pédro, Bouaké, Yamoussoukro, Odienné, etc.). A decentralisation policy also served as a master plan for infrastructure related to the 2024 African Cup of Nations. The cost of this strategy, commensurate with the challenges, is high. Under the 2020-2025 National Development Plan, the government was expected to mobilise nearly $30 billion in public investment (in addition to the $59 billion to be provided by the private sector).