Côte d’Ivoire

Peoples Under Threat Ranking:
#46
12

Communities at risk

Northern Mande (Dioula), Senoufo, Bete, newly-settled groups

Summary

Spiraling conflict in Burkina Faso has swept into neighbouring Côte d’Ivoire, with a significant upsurge in cross-border attacks by al-Qaeda-linked fighters since March 2021. With attacks striking military personnel and civilians mainly in the Ivoirien districts of Savanes and Zanzan, a worrying sign is the increasing deployment of improvised explosive devices (IEDs): while previously unseen… Read more »

Peoples Under Threat Data

2021 Data Peoples under Threat value
Self-determination conflicts3
Major armed conflict1
Prior genocide / politicideNo data
Flight of refugees and IDPs0.0036
Legacy of vengeance - group grievance7.3
Rise of factionalized elites9.6
Voice and Accountability-0.483
Political Stability-0.976
Rule of Law-0.599
OECD country risk classification5
TOTAL10.786

The overall measure for each country is based on a basket of 10 indicators. The number in each row is drawn from the source for that particular indicator. The sources of data and calculations used are detailed on the Notes to Table page. 

Background

Spiraling conflict in Burkina Faso has swept into neighbouring Côte d’Ivoire, with a significant upsurge in cross-border attacks by al-Qaeda-linked fighters since March 2021. With attacks striking military personnel and civilians mainly in the Ivoirien districts of Savanes and Zanzan, a worrying sign is the increasing deployment of improvised explosive devices (IEDs): while previously unseen in Côte d’Ivoire, in both Burkina Faso and Niger these have been a prelude to attacks growing in scope and scale. Though still geographically contained to some extent, this crisis compounds pre-existing political tensions in the country, a decade on from a brief but bloody post-election civil war which worsened divisions along ethno-religious lines between the predominantly Muslim north and Christian south. While former President Laurent Gbagbo has since been acquitted of war crimes by the ICC and in October 2021 officially returned to the political arena, the peace process launched by his successor and rival Alassane Ouattara remains fragile, as evidenced by an October 2020 election which precipitated deadly clashes between opposition and government supporters as well as armed militias.