Côte d’Ivoire: citizenship and property rights Land laws in this west African nation have often been used to stimulate economic growth and secure political advantage On a recent humid July afternoon Affoussy Bamba discussed Côte d’Ivoire’s amazing turnaround. A former spokeswoman for the rebel side during two civil wars, she sat on her terrace in Abidjan, the commercial capital. Sipping mango juice, she reflected on this country’s transformation from a poster child for successful African development into a two-time warzone. Two phrases resonated during that hour-long conversation: “Citizenship and land,” she said. “Mess with those two things, and you’ll have…
Brian Klaas
The fall and rise of Abidjan Côte d’Ivoire’s economic capital emerges from the shadow of war Two years ago I was mugged on the street near Abidjan’s glimmering lagoon in the city centre. When I went to the police station to report the theft, I was taken aback when the officer on duty whispered to me, “Must have been a northerner. They’ve taken over.” I have no idea where the thief was from. He was never caught. This xenophobic reaction, however, is indicative of simmering geographic and ethnic divides in Côte d’Ivoire’s largest city. Abidjan, once known as the Paris…
Tunisia: inflation and terrorism Violence and volatility deter tourism and investment, the lifeblood of middle-class workers On December 17th 2010, 27-year-old middle-class vegetable vendor Muhammad Bouazizi set himself on fire in Sidi Bouzid, Tunisia. His act of self-immolation, protesting that potent cocktail of political repression and limited economic opportunity, set Tunisia ablaze with a political uprising that ignited the Arab spring. Less than a month after Mr Bouazizi’s literal spark, Tunisia’s longtime autocrat, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, fled into exile. Out of the ashes of his regime, a fragile, fledgling democracy began to arise. In 2011 Tunisia voted for the…
