1985 Edition

Airfields

147 total, 140 usable; 85 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m, 34 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 39 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Branches

Army, Navy, Air Force

President has sweeping powers, unicameral legislature (140-member National Assembly), separate judiciary

Capital

Abidjan (capital city changed to Yamoussoukro in March 1983 but not recognized by US)

Civil air

132 major transport aircraft

Coastline

515 km People

Communists

no Communist party; possibly some sympathizers

Elections

legislative and municipal elections were held in November 1980; HouphouetBoigny reelected in October 1980 to his fifth consecutive five-year term; next round of national elections scheduled for October 1985 Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party of the Ivory Coast (PDCI), only party; Houphouet-Boigny firmly controls party

Ethnic divisions

7 major indigenous ethnic groups; no single tribe more than 20% of population; most important are Agni, Baoule, Krou, Senoufou, Mandingo; approximately 2 million foreign Africans, mostly Burkinabe; about 70,000 to 75,000 non-Africans (40,000 French and 25,000 to 30,000 Lebanese)

Government leader

Felix HOUPHOUETBOIGNY, President (since 1960)

Highways

294,410 km total; autos — trade 5,900 km, state highways 45, 170 km, provincial highways 101,680 km, communal highways 141,660 km; 260,500 km concrete, bituminous, or stone block, 26,900 km gravel and crushed stone, 7,010 km earth

Inland waterways

1,600 km for various types of commercial traffic

Labor force

over 85% of population engaged in agriculture, forestry, livestock raising; about 1 1% of labor force are wage earners, nearly half in agriculture, remainder in government, industry, commerce, and professions

Land boundaries

3,227 km Water

Language

French (official), over 60 native dialects; Dioula most widely spoken

Legal system

based on French civil law system and customary law; constitution adopted 1960; judicial review in the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court; legal education at Abidjan School of Law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Limits of territorial waters (claimed)

12 nm (economic, including fishing, 200 nm)

Literacy

24%

Military budget

for fiscal year ending 31 December 1984, $9.5 billion; about 5.3% of central government budget 170km Sec regional map VII Land 322,463 km2; slightly larger than New Mexico; 52% grazing, fallow, and waste; 40% forest and wood; 8% cultivated; 322 km of lagoons and connecting canals extend eastwest along eastern part of the coast

Military manpower

males 15-49, 14,187,000; 11,960,000 fit for military service; 46 1 ,000 reach military age (18) annually

National holiday

7 December

Nationality

noun — Ivorian(s); adjective — Ivorian

Official name

Republic of the Ivory Coast

Organized labor

20% of wage labor force Government

Pipelines

crude oil, 1,703 km; refined products, 2,148 km; natural gas, 16,660 km

Political subdivisions

25 departments subdivided into 127 subprefectures

Population

10,056,000 (July 1985), average annual growth rate 4.0%

Ports

9 major, 1 1 secondary, 40 minor

Religion

63% indigenous, 25% Muslim, 12% Christian

Suffrage

universal over age 21

Telecommunications

well engineered, well constructed, and efficiently operated; 21.68 million telephones (38.2 per 100 popl.); 135 AM, 1,837 FM, 1,407 TV stations; 20 submarine cables; 2 communication satellite ground stations with a total of 5 antennas Defense Forces

Type

republic; one-party presidential regime established 1960