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In a region whose political systems have otherwise been noted for lack of stability, Côte d'Ivoire has shown remarkable political stability since its independence from France in 1960. Much as changed recently, culminating in the Civil war in Côte d'Ivoire. Its relations with the United States are excellent. When many other countries in the region were undergoing repeated military coups, experimenting with Marxism, and developing ties with the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China, Côte d'Ivoire - under Félix Houphouët-Boigny, president from independence until his death in December 1993 - maintained a close political allegiance to the West. President Bédié is very familiar with the United States, having served as Côte d'Ivoire's first ambassador to this country.
Looking toward the country's future, the fundamental issue is whether its political system will maintain the stability which is the sine qua non for investor confidence and further economic development. Côte d'Ivoire evolved, with relatively little violence or dislocation, from a single-party state, beginning in 1990. Opposition parties, independent newspapers, and independent trade unions were made legal at that time. Since those major changes occurred, the country's pace of political change has been slow. Whether further democratic reform will take place, adequate to meet future challenges, is unknown. As is generally true in the region, the business environment is one in which personal contact and connections remain important, where rule of law does not prevail with assurance, and where the legislative and judicial branches of the government remain weak. The political system remains highly centralized with the president dominating both the ruling party and the legislature and judiciary. Côte d'Ivoire's efforts to break down central state control of the economy are undermined by the state's continued central control of the political system.
Côte d'Ivoire has a high population growth ratePopulation growth rate is a term used in demographics and ecology which refers to the rate at which the number of individuals in a population increases. Simple models of population growth include the exponential model and the logistic model. see also Popu, a high crimeSee crime fiction for a survey of the fictional treatment of crimes and their detection and criminals and their motives. Crime Lake is a lake between Ashton-under-Lyne and Failsworth in Greater Manchester in England. A crime is an act which violates a law rate (particularly in Abidjan), a high incidence of AIDSAIDS Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome sometimes written Aids is a human disease characterized by progressive destruction of the body's immune system. It is widely accepted that AIDS results from infection with HIV, a multiplicity of tribeViewed historically or developmentally, a tribe consists of a social formation existing before the development of, or outside of, states. Many people use the term to refer to any non- Western or indigenous society. Some social scientists use the term to rs, sporadic studentAlternate uses: Student (disambiguation Etymologically derived from study a student is one who studies. Also known as a disciple in the sense of a religious area of study, and/or in the sense of a "discipline" of learning. In widest use, student is used t unrest, a differential rate of in-country development according to region, and a dichotomy of religion associated with region and tribe. These factors put stress on the political system and will become more of a problem if the economy-not quite as dependent today on cocoaThis article is about "cocoa", the food. For information about "Cocoa", the API and programming environment for the Mac OS X operating system, see Cocoa (software). For information about the city in Florida, see Cocoa, Florida. Cocoa may refer to either t and coffeeThis article discusses the coffee plant; for information on the beverage see coffee (drink). Coffea arabica Arabian Coffee Coffea benghalensis Bengal Coffee Coffea canephora Robusta Coffee Coffea congensis Congo Coffee Coffea liberica Liberian Coffee Coff as it was some years ago but still dependent - takes a plunge similar to that of the 1980s.
The political system in Côte d'Ivoire is president-dominated. The Prime Minister concentrates principally on coordinating and implementing economic policy. The key decisions - political, military, or economic - continue to be made by President Bédié, as they were made by President Houphouët-Boigny. However, political dialogue is much freer today than prior to 1990, especially due to the opposition press, which vocalizes its criticism of the regime. The Ivorian Constitution affords the legislature some independence, but it has not been widely exercised. Until 1990, all legislators were from the PDCI. After the most recent elections ( 19951995 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). It has a Golden number of 1, and was the first year of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People (1995- 2005): http://www. org/culture/indigenous . Events January events Ja- 1996), the PDCI continues to hold 149 out of 175 seats. The PDCI's "core" region may be described as the terrain of the Baoule tribe in the country's center, home of both Houphouët-Boigny and Bédié; however, the PDCI is well-entrenched in all parts of Côte d'Ivoire.
The remaining 26 seats in the National Assembly are divided equally by the only two other parties of national scope-the FPI ( Ivorian Popular Front ) and RDR (Rally of Republicans). The oldest opposition party is the FPI, a moderate party which has a socialist coloration but which is more concerned with democratic reform than radical economic change; it is strongest in the terrain of its Bete tribe leader, Laurent Gbagbo. The non-ideological RDR was formed in September 1994 by former members of the PDCI's reformist wing who hoped that former Prime Minister Alassane Ouattara would run and prevail in the 1995 presidential election (but who was disqualified by subsequent legislation requiring 5-year residency); it is strongest in the Muslim north.
The presidential election of October 1995 was boycotted by the FPI and RDR because of Ouattara's disqualification and the absence of an independent electoral commission (among other grievances). Their "active boycott" produced a certain amount of violence and hundreds of arrests (with a number of the arrestees not tried for 2-1/2 years). These grievances remain unaddressed, with the next round of elections coming in the year 2000.