National Holiday(s): include date & event/celebration
Independence Day, 7 August
Description of Legislative Branch/Powers
unicameral Parliament consists of the National Assembly (255 seats; members directly elected in single- and multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 5-year terms); note - the new constitution of November 2016 calls for a bicameral legislature with the addition of a Senate
Description of Judicial Branch/Powers
highest court(s): Supreme Court or Cour Supreme (organized into Judicial, Audit, Constitutional, and Administrative Chambers; consists of the court president, 3 vice-presidents for the Judicial, Audit, and Administrative chambers, and 9 associate justices or magistrates) judge selection and term of office: judges nominated by the Superior Council of the Magistrature, a 7-member body consisting of the national president (chairman), 3 "bench" judges, and 3 public prosecutors; judges appointed for life subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal (organized into civil, criminal, and social chambers); first instance courts; peace courts
Description of Executive Branch/Powers
Chief of state
Head of government
Cabinet : Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 25 October 2015 (next to be held in 2020); prime minister appointed by the president
Suffrage (who is allowed to vote)
18 years of age; universal
Name of THEIR Ambassador to the U.S.
Ambassador Daouda DIABATE
Location of THEIR embassy in the U.S.
2424 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
Location(s) of THEIR consulate(s) in the U.S. (just the name/s of city/ies is fine)
Washington, DC
Name of U.S. Ambassador to THEM
Charge d'Affaires Andrew Haviland
Location of U.S. embassy THERE
Cocody Riviera Golf 01, Abidjan
Location(s) of U.S. consulate(s) THERE (just the name/s of city/ies is fine)
Abidjan
Name of THEIR representative to UN
Claude Stanislas Bouah-Kamon
Video or audio (from YouTube??) of their national anthem being played
"L'Abidjanaise" (Song of Abidjan)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMeKOVYilxE
National Symbol(s)
elephant; national colors: orange, white, green
Descriptions of International Disputes
Ghana-Ivory Coast maritime boundary dispute
Quantity of refugees inside country AND country(ies) of origin of refugees
Thousands of Ivorian fled from Ivory Coast as refugees but not many people came to ivory Coast as refugees.
Quantity of Internally Displaced Persons
308,272
Quantity of Stateless Persons
700,000
Description of current human trafficking issues related to this country
Cote d’Ivoire is a source, transit, and destination country for women and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking. Trafficking within the country is more prevalent than transnational trafficking, and the majority of identified victims are children. Ivorian women and girls are primarily subjected to forced labor in domestic service and restaurants in Cote d’Ivoire but are also exploited in sex trafficking. Ivorian boys subjected to forced labor within the country in the agricultural and service industries, especially cocoa production.
Description of Illicit Drug trafficking/use
illicit producer of cannabis, mostly for local consumption; utility as a narcotic transshipment point to Europe reduced by ongoing political instability; while rampant corruption and inadequate supervision leave the banking system vulnerable to money laundering, the lack of a developed financial system limits the country's utility as a major money-laundering center (2008)
Chief of State (official public face of government)
President Alassane Dramane OUATTARA
Head of Government (actual leader of government)
Prime Minister Daniel Kablan DUNCAN
three equal vertical bands of orange (hoist side), white, and green; orange symbolizes the land (savannah) of the north and fertility, white stands for peace and unity, green represents the forests of the south and the hope for a bright future