CIVICUS discusses Côte d’Ivoire’s upcoming presidential election with Kaberu Tairu, country representative for Côte d’Ivoire at the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development, a West African think tank specialising in media innovation and development. Founded in Nigeria in 2014, the Centre focuses on investigative journalism, fact-checking and defending freedom of expression, and has expanded its activities to several African countries since 2020.
The election is taking place in a climate of high political tension. Incumbent President Alassane Ouattara’s bid for a fourth term has reignited debates about constitutional term limits, as the constitution used to restrict presidents to two terms before it was revised in 2016. The Constitutional Council has disqualified most candidates, including the most prominent ones. These disqualifications have sparked opposition protests and fuelled fears about election transparency in a country where no presidential election has resulted in a peaceful transfer of power since 1995.
