Most segments of the telecommunications market have continued to flourish during previous crises which started in 1999. The sector is dominated by mobile telephony, with South Africa’s MTN and France Telecom-owned Orange leading the market. The aggressive launches of a third and a fourth GSM network in 2006/07 by Moov (owned by Etisalat of the UAE) and KoZ (operated by the Lebanese Comium Group) accelerated the already fast growth and have pushed mobile market penetration well above the African average.

A fifth mobile network was launched by Libya’s LapGreen in late 2008 under the name Oricel (also referred to as Green Network or GreenN). However, the company may become a casualty of the events in Libya in 2011.

UAE-based Warid Telecom is standing by to enter the market as the sixth player pending problems with frequency spectrum allocation, and Nigeria’s Globacom has also been awarded a licence.

Globacom has announced it will land its Glo-1 international submarine fibre optic cable in the country which will bring down the cost of international bandwidth. In addition, several other cables are scheduled to reach Cote d’Ivoire in the coming years. The Internet and broadband market has remained underdeveloped due to the high cost of international bandwidth, caused by a monopolisation of access to the SAT-3/WASC international fibre optic submarine cable, the only one currently serving the country. Despite these obstacles, Cote d’Ivoire has become West Africa’s third largest Internet market after Nigeria and Ghana, with services superior to those in many other African countries, including ADSL with up to 8Mb/s. WiMAX and EV-DO wireless broadband services are also available, some of them at very competitive prices.

Fixed-line incumbent Cote d’Ivoire Telecom (CI-Telecom) was majority-privatized in 1997 when France Telecom bought a controlling stake. A second national operator (SNO), Arobase was licensed before the civil war but only got off the ground in 2006 and was then acquired by MTN. Both companies are rolling out CDMA2000 1x fixed-wireless systems and fibre optic backbone networks and also control leading ISPs in the country.

Third generation mobile broadband services have not yet been introduced but are expected in the near future as a means for the mobile operators to broaden their service portfolio and combat the rapidly decreasing average revenue per user (ARPU) in the voice market.

For information on Cote d'Ivoire Telecommunications company contact details, please see the following link: 4.2.9 Cote d'Ivoire Additional Service Provision Contact List

Telecommunication Regulation

Existing Humanitarian Telecoms Systems

For information on Cote d'Ivoire Telecommunications company contact details, please see the following link: 4.2.9 Cote d'Ivoire Additional Service Provision Contact List

For additional information on Cote d'Ivoire Telecommunications, please see the following document: Cote d'Ivoire Telecommunications Information

Cote D’Ivoire Food Suppliers, Accommodation and Other Markets

For information on Cote d'Ivoire Food Suppliers, Accommodation and Other Markets contact details, please see the following link: 4.2.9 Cote d'Ivoire Additional Service Provision Contact List

Accommodation

There are a reasonable number of hotels in major cities, particularly in Abidjan which boasts several of international standards. In general most towns will offer three classes of accommodation ranging from luxury right down to economy which is fairly basic. Hotels are busy so it is advisable to book your stay in advance. There isn't much bed and breakfast or hostel style accommodation available in the country and due to the current political climate it is recommended that travelers stay in a reputable hotel rather than more traditional lodgings used by backpackers.

For information on Cote d'Ivoire Accommodation contact details, please see the following document: Cote d'Ivoire Accommodation Contacts

For information on Cote d'Ivoire Food Suppliers, Accommodation and Other Markets contact details, please see the following link: 4.2.7 Cote D'Ivoire Additional Service Provision Contact List

Food Suppliers

It is possible to purchase foodstuffs produced in Côte d’Ivoire  such as rice, bean, corn, sugar,  vegetable oil) locally as well as imported foods such as rice and salt. It is recommended to purchase locally produced foodstuffs such as rice, corn and beans during the harvest period between October and January in order to secure a better price.  During the lean season between June and September these foodstuffs are in high demand and can become extremely expensive.

Although produced locally, rice, oil and salt are also imported in large quantities for local consumption.  There is a ban in the importation of sugar. The main exports of foodstuffs are fruits, cassava, corn, cocoa, and coffee.

There are many differents suppliers present in the local food market. For information on Cote d'Ivoire Food Suppliers, Accommodation and Other Markets contact details, please see the following link: 4.2.9 Cote d'Ivoire Additional Service Provision Contact List

Key airport information may also be found at: World Aero Data Website for Cote d'Ivoire

The air transport network includes 27 airport and public airstrips including 3 international airports (Abidjan, Yamoussoukro and Bouaké). The airports of Abidjan and Yamoussoukro are the only ones which can handle jumbo jets. The following table lists airports in Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast).  The airports include various types like commercial, local, international, and military.

Procedures for Foreign Registered Aircraft

For information on Cote d'Ivoire Procedures for Foreign Registered Aircraft, please see the following document: 

Cote d'Ivoire Procedures for Foreign Registration of Aircraft

Cote d'Ivoire Air Space

For Cote d'Ivoire airport contacts, please see the following links: 

4.2.1 Cote D'Ivoire Government Contact List

Annex 4.2.5 Cote d'Ivoire Airport Company Contact List

SIR – Société Ivoirienne de Raffinage – was established in 1962 in order to:

• Supply the local market and  region with quality refined products;
• Guarantee a regular supply of oil products for the CI local market;
• Be a player on the international market.

Crude oil is foremost imported from Nigeria (50%) or via purchases on the spot market (35%) in shipments of 100,000 to 125,000 mt, via some 24 to 26 shipments a year. The shipments are offloaded at one of the ocean mooring buoys four nautical miles off the coast. Between 25 and 60,000 mt of crude oil originates yearly from the Côte d’Ivoire oilfields. The SIR plant is solely geared towards the refining of crude oil with low sulphur content and produces consequently fuels with low sulphur content. SIR is also procuring natural gas from the Côte d’Ivoire “Panthère” oil field operated by the American consortium, Ocean Energy. The SIR annual production of refined products amounts to 3.5 million tons. The Côte d’Ivoire market is good for 1.1 million tons of refined products. The Government exercises strict control over fuel oil prices. SIR has a monopoly for the supply of refined oil products in Côte d’Ivoire. Some 100,000 mt is exported annually to the Burkina Faso and Mali market. The remainder is sold on the international market. The market for the distribution of fuel oils has been liberalised and is controlled by the major oil companies regrouped in the “Groupement des Professionnels du Pétrole – GPP-CI” and by private distributors regrouped in the “ Association Professionnelle des Pétroliers de Côte d’Ivoire – APCI”.

The “Société Multinationale de Bitume – SBM “is a subsidiary of SIR. It supplies the local market and the region with bitumen and assorted products. The range of products supplied by SIR and currently available in the country includes:

• Super (lead free) premium/ 4 stars
• Paraffin oil / kerosene
• Jet A1
• Gasoil / diesel
• Normal petrol
• Vacuum Gas Oil

Mytravelcost information on Cote d'Ivoire

For information on Cote d'Ivoire government contacts details, please see the following link: 4.2.1 Cote D'Ivoire Government Contact List

For information on Cote d'Ivoire fuel company contacts details, please see the following link: 4.2.6 Cote d'Ivoire Fuel Provider Contact List

Fuel Pricing

The Government exercises strict controls over the price of fuel oil products in CI

Seasonal Variations

Fuel Transportation

Internal transportation of fuel products IS carried out with 35 to 50 m³ tanker lorries. The construction of an oil pipeline between Abidjan – Yamoussoukro – Bouake is in progress. The transportation infrastructure and fleet are sufficient to handle current domestic needs as well as increased demand from the humanitarian community

Standards, Quality and Testing

For information on Cote d'Ivoire additional details, please see the following document: Cote d'Ivoire Fuel Additional Information

Note: The information provided in the attached document, which has been taken from the old DLCA, does not match the structure of the new LCA and is therefore provided separately.

Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso jointly own SITARAIL, a transnational railway. The line was one of the first in Africa to be awarded as a concession to the private sector in 1995 and is a key conduit for transport of bulk freight to and from landlocked Burkina Faso. Between 2000 and 2005, Sitarail and the other West African railway concession—Transrail—were by far the strongest performing concessions on a wide range of operational indicators, including productivity of labor, locomotives, and rolling stock. Traffic density on Sitarail was close to 500,000 tonne-kilometers per route-kilometer, which was by far the highest in the region (although still low in absolute terms). Between 1995 and 2000, during the first five years of the concession, the volume of freight almost tripled from 300 million to 800 million tonnes annually.

For information on Cote d'Ivoire Railway Company Contact details, please see the following link: 4.2.10 Cote d'Ivoire Railway Company Contact List 

Travel Distance Matrix

Note: The information provided in the above table has been taken from the old DLCA and amended to match the structure of the new LCA.

Railway Companies and Consortia

SITARAIL is a consortium jointly owned by the governments of CI and Burkina Faso, each 15%, the Railway Employees Trust Fund 3% and a French/Danish business group (freight operators SDV, SAGA and MAERSK, consultancy bureaux SYSTRA and TRANSURB ) for 67%. The initial concession, which operates both passenger and freight services, was awarded in March 1983, became effective in August 1995 and has a duration of 15 years.

Capacity Table

Note: The information provided in the above table has been taken from the old DLCA and amended to match the structure of the new LCA.

Key Route Information

Key Stations

Bouake railway station:

Bouake was before 2002 an important railway station. All local factories and warehouses had their own private railway siding. With the disappearance of trade and industry the railway sidings are not served anymore and totally overgrown. Transit  (loading/unloading) must therefore be done at the Bouake railway station. There is a special siding with loading/discharging quay, which can accommodate 8 wagons simultaneously. No shunting locomotive is stationed in Bouake.

Small locomotive and wagon maintenance works are carried out. A recovery wagon mounted with a 20 MT capacity crane is available. The railway grid has 6 tracks of 900 meters.

Ferkessédougou railway station:

This railway station is being developed as a fully equipped dry port and transit point for goods destined for the cities of Korhogo, Boundiali , Odienné and the northern part of the country but also as a  very promising interface for import and export goods into and from Mali. The freight station is operated by SAGA – SDV.  A 40 MT container reach stacker and a 12 MT capacity forklift are permanently stationed in Ferkessédougou. There is a container yard – 200 m x 60 m. The container yard needs resurfacing. Various shipping lines offer export reefer transport (export of mangoes in the season). A generator with 6 plugs and 4 Gensets are readily available. Two very large covered warehouses are being refurbished in order to accommodate large import and export consignments (1 warehouse with 7 x 350 m² compartments - 1 warehouse with 5 x 350 m² compartments) Estimated storage capacity: 10 to 12.000 MT bagged cargo)

BURKINA FASO by RAIL from ABIDJAN