Economy of Ivory Coast

Economy of Ivory Coast

Skyline of the Plateau district, the CBD of Abidjan, the economic capital of Côte d'Ivoire
Currency	West African CFA franc (XOF, CFA)
Fixed exchange rates	655.957 CFA francs per euro
Fiscal year	Calendar year
Trade organisations	AU, AfCFTA, WTO, ECOWAS, WAEMU
Country group	Developing/Emerging[1] Lower-middle income economy[2]
Statistics
Population	29,344,847[3]
GDP	$75.075 billion (nominal, 2022)[4] $173.188 billion (PPP, 2022e)[4]
GDP rank	72nd (nominal, 2022e) 76th (PPP, 2022e)
GDP growth	6.2% (2019) 2.0% (2020) 6.0% (2021) 6.5% (2022e)[4]
GDP per capita	$2,646 (nominal, 2022e)[4] $6,103 (PPP, 2022e)[4]
GDP per capita rank	140th (nominal, 2021) 133th (PPP, 2021)
GDP by sector	agriculture: 20.1% industry: 26.6% services: 53.3% (2017 est.)[5]
Inflation (CPI)	2.0% (2020 est.)[6]
Population below poverty line	39.5% (2018 est.)[7] 57.4% on less than $3.20/day (2015)[8]
Gini coefficient	41.5 medium (2015)[9]
Human Development Index	0.538 low (2019)[10] (162th) 0.331 IHDI (2018)[11]
Labour force	8,583,001 (2019)[12] 54.2% employment rate (2017)[13]
Labour force by occupation	agriculture: 68% (2007 est.)[5]
Unemployment	9.4% (2013 est.)[5]
Main industries	foodstuffs, beverages; wood products, oil refining, gold mining, truck and bus assembly, textiles, fertilizer, building materials, electricity
External
Exports	$16.326 billion (2018 est.)[14]
Export goods	cocoa beans, gold, rubber, refined petroleum, crude petroleum
Main export partners	Netherlands 10.7%  United States 6.0%  France 5.9%  Malaysia 5.0%  Vietnam 4.9%  Mali 4.8%  Spain 4.8%   Switzerland 4.7%  Germany 4.7%  Burkina Faso 4.6% (2019)[15]
Imports	$14.248 billion (2018 est.)[14]
Import goods	crude petroleum, rice, frozen fish, refined petroleum, packaged medicines
Main import partners	China 17.2%  Nigeria 13.5%  France 10.7%  USA 5.0%  India 4.3% (2019)[15]
FDI stock	$10.234 billion ( 2018 est.)[16] Abroad: N/A ( 2018 est.)[16]
Current account	−$1.86 billion (2017 est.)[5]
Gross external debt	$13.07 billion (31 December 2017 est.)[5]
Public finances
Government debt	47% of GDP (2017 est.)[5]
Budget balance	−4.2% (of GDP) (2017 est.)[5]
Revenues	7.749 billion (2017 est.)[5]
Expenses	9.464 billion (2017 est.)[5]
Economic aid	recipient: ODA, $1 billion (1996 est.)
Credit rating	Moody's[17] Ba3 (stable) Fitch[18] B+ (Stable)
Foreign reserves	$6.257 billion (31 December 2017 est.)[5]
Main data source: CIA World Fact Book All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars.

The economy of Ivory Coast is stable and currently growing, in the aftermath of political instability in recent decades. The Ivory Coast's economy is largely market-based and depends heavily on the agricultural sector. Almost 70% of the Ivorian people are engaged in some form of agricultural activity.^[19] The economy grew 82% in the 1960s, reaching a peak growth of 360% in the 1970s, but this proved unsustainable and it shrank by 28% in the 1980s and a further 22% in the 1990s. This decline, coupled with high population growth, resulted in a steady fall in living standards. The Gross national product per capita, now rising again, was about US$727 in 1996. It was substantially higher two decades before. Real GDP growth is expected to average 6.5% in 2024-25.

After several years of lagging performance, the Ivorian economy began a comeback in 1994, due to the devaluation of the CFA franc and improved prices for cocoa and coffee, growth in non-traditional primary exports such as pineapples and rubber, limited trade and banking liberalization, offshore oil and gas discoveries, and generous external financing and debt rescheduling by multilateral lenders and France.^[20] The 50% devaluation of franc zone currencies on 12 January 1994 caused a one-time jump in the inflation rate to 26% in 1994, but the rate fell sharply from 1996–1999.^[20] Moreover, government adherence to donor-mandated reforms led to a jump in growth to 5% annually in 1996–99.^[20] A majority of the population remains dependent on smallholder cash crop production.^[21]