Côte d´Ivoire Reception Booklet
For Trainees
C O N T E N T S
ABOUT CÔTE D’IVOIRE
CULTURE & TOURISME
INTERNSHIPS OPPORTUNITIES
VISA, HOUSING & STAY
FUN, TRAVEL & PARTIES
GOOD TO KNOW
ABOUT CÔTE D’IVOIRE
It’s used to say “None comes to our land without dropping tears when it’s time to go back home”. Ivoirians positively impact their visitors along with foreigners living among them. Our country is the country of hospitality, the country of Joy, the country of human warm…
COTE D’IVOIRE!!! This reception booklet has been carefully designed for YOU! Do take your time to read it and have an idea about the country and our Internships opportunities. We ensure you a pleasant stay in our country, the country of hospitality.
AKWABA* :)
* AKWABA = WELCOME
Our History Prior to its colonization by Europeans, Côte d'Ivoire was home to several
west African empires, A 1843–1844 treaty made Côte d'Ivoire a protectorate of France and in 1893, it became a French colony as part of
the European scramble for Africa. 7th August 1960 Marked the independence of the country. Since then, 5 Presidents leaded the country.
Laurent GBAGBO
‘‘FELIX Houphouët Boigny’’ World Nobel Peace Prize Winner & 1st president of
Côte d’ Ivoire
Our current president: H.E. Mr. Alassane OUATTARA
Population Côte d’Ivoire is a melting-pot . Different
conflicts in neighbors countries from the XII to the XVIII century populated the country.
They’ve decided to make of this place their Homeland, our Homeland :)
Composed of around 21,000,000 habitants today, with around 60 ethnics.
Has a very young population :
75 % are less than 25 years, we have a rate of growth of 3.3% & 43% of
concerns to urban life.
Has 6,000,000 of immigrants (26%). It’s the world highest rate.
Population
Rural and modern life are a typical contrast
Economy Côte d’Ivoire represents 42% of the West Africa GDP. The major sector of the economy is Agriculture(60%). Côte d’Ivoire is the first world Producer of Cocoa and 2nd for Coffee
The industrial sector is dominated by food and Oil (that have been recently discovered). There is also a boom in High Information Technology and Telecommunication sector We also notice the constant settlements of International commercial Banks And an increasing rate of companies providing different services in several sectors
Economy
CULTURE & TOURISME
The official language is FRENCH. English is learnt at school...
According to OIF in 2009, 99% of people in Abidjan (the country's largest city) can read, write and
speak French.
3 main religions are practiced in the country : Christianism (40%), Islam (36%),Animism (22%) and people are free to worship what s/he believes as God.
Culture
Ivorian culture is dominated by the customs of each
ethnic group and is marked by
festivals and ceremonies.
Culture
Art and Culture are considered and intervene at different steps (fineries of
marriages, birthchild Ceremonies, burial and funeral, generations celebrations, musical
instruments and others…)
We have a variety of food here. They are fatty and spicy . Most of our food are accompanied with
soups.
Ivorians eat a lot of « attiéké » (Couscous of cassava) especially «GARBA», « Aloco » (fried plantain), rice and « foutou » (pounded yam, Cassava or plantain)
etc...
Culture (Food)
Culture (Traditional alcohol)
Palm wine ;)
Cocoa Liquor ;)
Côte d’Ivoire distinguished itself with 3 sites known and classified as world
properties by the UNESCO.’
Côte d’Ivoire has several marvellous touristic sites : Large parks and protected reserves … Waterfalls and the 18 montains in the West
and Beaches Etc…
Tourism
Some Animals in the National
Park of Marahoué
Tourism
Tourism
The largest Basilica in the world
Yamoussoukro: The Basilica ‘Notre Dame de la Paix’
Tourism
Tourism
Traditional Mosques in the north and The Bridge made of Vines in
the west (People believe it has been built by the forest spirits during
nights)
Tourism (transport)
There are several means of transport and the price change from one to another
according to the distance covered.
In Côte d’Ivoire, things are cheap except houses (in the capital), Computers, lap
tops (technological stuff).
VISA, HOUSING & STAY
Prior your arrival and during your stay in Côte d’Ivoire, AIESEC provides you all her side documents and assistance you
may need regarding VISA Issues:
In some of Côte d’Ivoire embassies abroad, the period of stay is limited, but the intern has the opportunity to extend his/her visa to the willing period of stay
upon arrived inside the country.
Upon arrived, the intern will be taken to the embassy of his country of origin for
registration. According to the Embassy, a card could be given to him to move freely within the country, or s/he should make
the photocopy of his/her passport legalized at the mayor hall of his
residence neighborhood. After that it’s recommended to keep the passport at
home, in a safe place.
AIESEC Côte d’Ivoire host interns in host families in order for them to directly live and
experience our culture :)
Every quarter we organize a ceremony to thank all the host families who agree to host our
interns for free. Each intern is then summoned to pay 100 $ once arrived in the country for the
whole duration of his/her stay.
* For more details about host families, see GOOD TO KNOW section
INTERNSHIPS OPPORTUNITIES
Internship Opportunities AIESEC in Côte d’Ivoire is the most growing country in terms
of
exchange in West Africa. (+250%) & constantly improving the
Quality of our TN’s to satisfy you
AIESEC Côte d’Ivoire proposes proper internships with our partners (Start ups, SMEs, private universities and few
Global National Partners such as PWC, Standard Chartered Bank…) in the fields of Management,
Marketing, Finance, IT, Technologies, Auditing, Teaching, Strategies, Market Studies and so on…
Internship Opportunities AIESEC Côte d’Ivoire also implements Projects in
partnership with NGOs on following topics:
HIV/AIDS and Human rights Issues projects
ENGLISH, GERMAN and SPANISH promotion projects
Conflict Management and peace building programs
FUN, TRAVELS & PARTIES
Marriage, comes around 28-35 years … For Fun, people go to super-fiestas on week-
ends :)
If you want to go out, there are many clubs and restaurants where you can enjoy yourself, people also go to the beach or host parties at
their place :)
Fun, Travels & Parties
INTERCITY TRAVELS You can generally just go to the bus station
and buy a bus ticket right when you are about to leave
The road trip tend to take a lot longer than indicated, so get prepared!
You my have to stop on the way for identification check in order to assure road security.
AIR Travel is VERY expensive inside the country!
Fun, Travels & Parties
Good to know
Good to Know Host families are our exchange partners and we trust
them.
So a bad behavior from our interns can affect the relationship with those host families.
That’s why it’s highly recommended to respect and behave as well as possible during the internship.
Try to learn from their culture and do not hesitate to talk to AIESEC representatives if you have any worries or
concerns with the host families.
Once you go back to your home country, it will also be nice to keep contact with at least the host family, by
mailing or calling them.
Good to Know
Things work differently in Côte d’Ivoire. It will probably take a lot longer for you to get things
done , and it can be very frustrating if it’s not what you’re maybe used to. The best thing you can do is to have a good attitude and try to be patient. Don’t be afraid to ask people many times for things you need; in some places this attitude can be rude, but here it can definitely be necessary as long as you
are polite, especially considering the fact that AIESECers are all students and may have a lot to
think or to do :)
Good to Know
AIESECers in General and ICX members particularly want to help you, that’s also why there are part of AIESEC. Talk to everyone and see who has time to help you taking care of your stuffs and needs. Even if you want to do things by yourself, it may be better to go
with someone from AIESEC because then they could teach you a lot about Côte
d’Ivoire.
Come and LIVE A ONE LIFE
EXPERIENCE in
CÔTE D’IVOIRE !!!