Cote d’Ivoire is the largest producer and exporter of cocoa beans internationally. Coffee and palm oil are the other two important products of Ivory Coast. After 2006, oil and natural gas have become more important revenue earners than cocoa or coffee. In the year ended 2006, Cote d’Ivoire earned a revenue of US $1.3 billion compared to US $1 billion earned from cocoa and related products. Situated in West Africa with the Gulf of Guinea to its south, this country has reserves of petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, manganese, gold, bauxite, diamond, nickel and copper. Hydroelectricity is an important source of power in Ivory Coast.
Economic activities of Cote d’Ivoire
Services or tertiary economic activities in Ivory Coast account for more than 50% of GDP (gross domestic product). It is followed by agricultural activity which accounts for about 28% of GDP, and industrial activity contributing around 21%.
Cocoa is the most important cash crop of Coe d’Ivoire, followed by coffee. Other agricultural products include manioc, sugar, rubber, cotton, palm kernels, sweet potatoes, rice, corn, timber, banana and pineapples. Of these products, cocoa, coffee, cotton, palm oil, pineapples, banana, and timber are exported. Ivory Coast, with a coastline of about 515 km is an excellent hub of fisheries. Fishes also are exported in significant quantities.
Among secondary economic activities oil exploration and refining is primary, followed by natural gas distribution. Other industries include power generation, bus and truck assembly, construction materials, ship building and repair, food items, beverages, and timber products. Petroleum is the main export item of Cote d’Ivoire.
Foodstuff, capital equipment, and fuel are the main imports of Cote d’Ivoire. France, Nigeria, Germany, USA, Netherlands, China and Burkina Faso are the overseas trade partners of Ivory Coast.
Economic parameters of Cote d’Ivoire
An idea about the economy of Cote d’Ivoire can be made from the following data:
GDP based on purchasing power parity (ppp) – US $32.85 billion
GDP calculated at official exchange rate – US $19.6 billion
Per capita GDP based on ppp – US $1700
Real growth rate of GDP – 1.6%
Goss fixed investment – 8.8% of GDP
Annual revenue – US $3.884 billion
Annual expenditure – US $4.106 billion
Export earning – US $8.476 billion f.o.b. (free on board)
Import expenditure – US $5.932 billion
Electricity consumption – 2.9 billion kWh*
Oil consumption – 27,000 bbl (billion barrels) per day*
Currency – Communaute Financiere Africaine franc, represented as ‘XOF’
All figures are as per estimates of 2007 except * marked data which are as per 2005 estimates.