Ivory Coast, also known as Cote d’Ivoire, is a country located in West Africa. Here are some 10 interesting facts about Ivory Coast:????????
1.Ivory Coast is the world’s largest producer and exporter of cocoa beans.
2.The official language of Ivory Coast is French, which is also the language of government and education.
3.Ivory Coast gained independence from France in 1960.
4.The population of Ivory Coast is approximately 26 million people.
5.The capital city of Ivory Coast is Yamoussoukro, but the largest city is Abidjan.
6.The country has a diverse religious landscape, with Christianity, Islam, and traditional religions all being practiced.
7.The national flag of Ivory Coast consists of three equal vertical bands of orange, white, and green, with a stylized orange elephant in the center.
8.The country has a tropical climate, with a rainy season from May to October and a dry season from November to April.
9.Ivory Coast is known for its music and dance, particularly the “zouglou” and “mapouka” styles.
10.The country has a diverse range of wildlife, including elephants, lions, hippos, crocodiles, and chimpanzees. However, much of the country’s wildlife is threatened by habitat loss and poaching.
What Are The Major Natural Resources Of The Ivory Coast?
Natural Resources;
Oil And Gas In The Ivory Coast
About 86% of the country’s gas and oil reserves are found in areas bordering the Atlantic Ocean while 7% are located in offshore wells. Oil was first discovered offshore in 1977 with production commencing in 1980. The country has considerable oil reserves making it a potential oil-exporting giant. By the year 2004, the nation was producing an estimated 35,541 barrels of oil per day. The nation has also discovered offshore oil wells, and production is ongoing at these wells that might potentially push the country’s proven oil reserves to higher estimates. The Espoir field, for example, began production in the year 2002 and is deemed to have up to 92 million barrels of oil. It also has gas reserves of up to 180 billion cubic feet. The adjacent Block CI-40 has recoverable oil reserves of up to 200 million barrels, while Block CI-112 which is found off the western coast of the nation is deemed to have 2.7 billion barrels of reserve oil.
Diamonds
Diamond mining is concentrated to the north of the country in the towns of Seguela in the region of Worodougou and Tortiya in the region of Vallee du Bandama. Diamonds were first discovered in 1928 and exploitation began in the 1940s by SAREMCI, a French company. At the time mining was mainly centered on the region around Tortiya. The company at its height produced up to 175,000 carats of diamonds before winding up operations in 1975. Mining around Sequela began in 1955 before the independence of the nation in 1960. Production at the time peaked to around 25,000 carats. The United Nations banned the importation of rough diamonds from the nation after it was found that diamonds were used to fund the civil war. Following the ban, an estimated 50,000 carats were still smuggled out of the country. Following the lifting of the ban, the nation legally exports about 20,000 carats of diamonds employing thousands of locals.
Hydroelectricity
The nation relies on thermal and hydropower generation facilities to produce electricity. Thermal facilities produce the bulk of the nation’s energy. About 38% of the nation’s electricity is produced through hydroelectric means. The hydroelectric facilities only use 63% of their electricity generation capacity. A significant amount of electricity produced in the nation is exported to neighboring nations such as Mali, Togo, Ghana, Burkina Faso, and Benin. In 2002, the nation exported an estimated 1.6 TWh of electricity to its neighbors while the nation’s domestic consumption stood at 3.109 Twh. The government-owned Compagnie Ivoirienne d’Electriciti manages virtually all aspects of generation and distribution of electricity in the country.
Cement
Ivory Coast is estimated to have a cement production capacity of up to 10 Mt/yr. Strong domestic and international demand has led to increased interest in cement production by various international investors.
Nickle
Ivory Coast has significant quantities of nickel which are found in various sites including the Bounta deposit located about 5.59 miles from the Samapleu project.
Prospects Of The Ivorian Economy
Although Ivory Coast has experienced political instability in the past, the country currently has one of the fastest growing economies. According to the IMF, the country had the highest growth rate of 8.5% in 2016 in contrast to another sub-Saharan African countries which averaged about 3%. Despite the tremendous growth, the World Bank estimates that about half of the population lives below the poverty line. The IMF forecasts that the country’s GDP will grow by about 7.4% between 2017 and 2020.
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