Nine bilateral cooperation agreements were signed on December 2, 2021 between Côte d’Ivoire and South Africa on the sidelines of a visit by President Cyril Ramaphosa to Abidjan. The aim is to increase trade between the two countries, which also often want to speak with one voice on the international stage.
According to Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara, these agreements – which concern the fields of defense, agriculture and hydrocarbons – will make it possible to intensify and boost the “strategic partnership” between Côte d’Ivoire and South Africa . “With President Cyril Ramaphosa, we have the ambition to raise the relations between our two countries to an unprecedented level. We reaffirmed it, with force, during the dinner offered in his honor, “he said on Twitter.
The two men had an interview before the signing of the agreements. On the agenda for discussions, ways and means of consolidating and further strengthening cooperation between their two countries. Moreover, Cyril Ramaphosa and his host have agreed to organize annual consultations during regular meetings to coordinate their positions on international politics.
As a reminder, the volume of trade between South Africa and the Ivory Coast stands at 500 million dollars. The balance is unbalanced due to a greater presence of South African interests in the West African country with, among others, the telecoms operator MTN and Standard Bank.
