The President of the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, Alassane Ouattara, has announced the construction of a city of innovation and culture. Construction of this city will begin in 2025 and will bring together state-of-the-art technological infrastructure, incubators, and spaces dedicated to the creation and promotion of arts and culture in a single location.
The President justified the launch of this new initiative as follows: "The dynamism of the culture, tourism, and digital sectors offers enormous opportunities for job creation and improving the living conditions of young people. That is why we will launch the construction of a city of innovation and culture in 2025."
As we explained in our article 2024 Retrospective, leaders in Côte d'Ivoire have understood—as have those in other West African countries—that creative and cultural industries create many job opportunities for young people.
The Ivorian government has expressed its desire to position Côte d'Ivoire as a hub for the creative audiovisual sector, a filming destination, and a place where African audiovisual content is promoted. SICA, launched in 2023 at the instigation of the Ivorian ministers of communication and culture, is an example of this desire to support sectors that promote youth employment.