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  • Title: [The migration policy of the Ivory Coast].
    Author: Brou K, Charbit Y.
    Journal: Rev Eur Migr Int; 1994; 10(3):33-59. PubMed ID: 12290034.
    Abstract:
    Migration policies adopted by the Ivory Coast at independence were essentially a continuation of colonial policies aimed at providing manpower for the coffee and cacao plantations of the south, whose exports were to form the basis of the national development strategy. Instead of forced labor, the government facilitated installation of migrants in agricultural areas by means of laws assuring their access to lands not currently in use. Massive immigration of workers resulted in an age and sex distribution favorable to the needs of the plantation economy. The concentration of development efforts in the forest zone of the south, including Abidjan, encouraged thousands of workers from the savannah to migrate south in search of higher incomes and better living conditions. Bilateral accords with the former Upper Volta and with France and multilateral accords with the Economic Community of the West African states regulated the migratory movement. The Ivory Coast's migration policy succeeded in populating the forest zone and permitted the Ivory Coast to construct a powerful economy. But the policy produced sometimes violent opposition among natives overwhelmed by foreigners in search of lands. The loss of labor force in the savannah threatened the nation's food supply and demographic balance. In the forest zone itself, many of the immigrant workers left the plantations to seek greater success in the cities, swelling the ranks of the urban unemployed and leaving much of the rural area short of labor. In prosperous times, when prices for southern goods were high, the system worked reasonably well. When economic conditions worsened, the inefficiency of the policy became clear. At those times the international conventions failed to control the influx because of the conflicting interests of the countries. Ethnic and regional tensions mounted, the rural exodus continued despite attempts to encourage regional development, and conflicts over land tenure intensified.
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