Background

Once an anchor of political and economic stability in West Africa, Côte d’Ivoire is emerging from an armed conflict which, since 2002, left the country divided between a rebel-controlled north and government-run south. After a four-year political stalemate and several unimplemented peace agreements, in March 2007, negotiations between President Gbagbo and Forces Nouvelles rebel leader Guillaume Soro – mediated by Burkina Faso's President Blaise Compaoré – led to the Ouagadougou political accord. The Accord allowed for the appointment of Soro as prime minister and paved the way for a national “identification process” to confirm the citizenship or immigration status of millions of Ivorians and people residing in Cote d’Ivoire. The national “identification process” is nearing completion, and 95 percent of applicants have been granted identification papers, although the number of applicants is much lower than initially estimated. Despite progress in the identification process, some Ivorians are fearful that lingering mistrust among the parties could undermine the credibility of the presidential elections now scheduled for November 30, 2008. The Ivorian government has contracted the French company Sagem Sécurité to produce voting and identity cards, in preparation for the upcoming elections.

Past Activities

Since 1993, NDI has built professional relationships with Ivorian political and civic leaders, through intermittent technical assistance to political parties and civic groups. During the political crisis in Côte d'Ivoire, NDI worked toward national reconciliation and the establishment of non-violent political processes. Since 2003, NDI has organized multiparty forums to facilitate communication on issues of national interest. In preparation for these events, the Institute trained party leaders on negotiation and communication skills during periods of national crisis.

Beginning in 2005, NDI stepped up its support to Ivorian political parties as they prepare to participate in the electoral process. That same year, NDI opened a political party resource center in the city of Yamoussoukro that provided party leaders with access to information and logistical resources. The center also served as a nexus for NDI events, such as multiparty roundtable discussions where women and youth leaders identified and developed strategies to address obstacles to their participation in the political process. The Institute also organized a seminar on the roles and responsibilities of parties in a democratic political system. In 2007, NDI moved its resource center to Abidjan to facilitate access for national party leaders.

Pictured above: Party leaders at a communications workshop in Abidjan.

Current Activities

NDI's current program in Côte d'Ivoire aims to promote constructive dialogue among Ivorian political actors on key electoral issues, and to increase the capacity of women and youth to participate fully in the upcoming elections.  The Institute has organized public forums around the country aimed at facilitating dialogue between parties and the general population. In 2007 and early 2008, NDI organized multiparty forums with party leaders and representatives of youth and women’s wings from all major political parties in Yamoussoukro, Gagnoa, Man, San Pedro, and Korhogo. NDI continues to support the participation of political parties in the electoral process through technical trainings for parties on communication techniques, fundraising and public outreach

In advance of the Nov. 30 presidential election, NDI, the UN mission in Abidjan (ONUCI) and the Ivorian electoral commission co-led negotiations on a code of conduct for Ivorian political parties. The code was adopted April 24 during a signing ceremony attended by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. The code seeks to regulate the behavior of political parties, candidates and their supporters, and identifies mechanisms to resolve election-related disputes. The consultative process helped political parties reach consensus on its provisions and ensured their support for it. The resulting historic document, the first to be signed in Ivorian history, represents the commitment of all Ivorian parties to resolve political and electoral disputes through dialogue and the rule of law rather than violence. The code of conduct also provides benchmarks against which Ivorians and international partners can hold parties accountable.

NDI has organized activities to enhance the capacity of Ivorian political parties to monitor the citizen identification and voter registration processes. The Institute has provided technical assistance to parties as they identify, train and deploy monitors to observe the mobile courts, and supported inter-party dialogue on the criteria for assessing the credibility of this process. In collaboration with Ivorian political parties, NDI produced a party agent monitor guide as a step-by-step reference for monitoring and reporting on the identification process, and a trainer’s manual to be used by parties when training monitors. Party Agent Monitor Trainings have been conducted in the cities of Gagnoa, Daloa, Man, Touba, Yamassoukro, Bondoukou, Korhogo, and San Pedro.

Pictured above: UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, left, with Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo, center, receiving the code of conduct from Robert Beugré Mambé, the president of the Ivorian electoral commission.

Funding

NDI programs in Côte d’Ivoire are funded by the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

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