Fausseni Dembélé, Director General of Radiodiffusion Télévision Ivoirienne (RTI) since 2019, was relieved of his duties by the Head of State following the Council of Ministers meeting on July 10.
Jean Martial Adou, the current chief of staff to the Minister of Communication, has been appointed acting Director General pending the appointment of a new Director General of RTI.
According to our information, malfunctions and governance and management issues were identified, leading to financial difficulties and discontent among employees, who had given notice of strike action.
Since the arrival of Fausseni Dembélé, RTI, which was the most powerful and best-funded public broadcaster in French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa, has had to contend with the rise of new private Ivorian channels, A+ Ivoire, NCI, Life TV, and 7 Info, which were launched in 2019 and have gradually eroded its audience and advertising revenue.
Despite significant advantages linked to its substantial funding and history, RTI has not managed to maintain its position as the leading television channel during this period: according to the latest results from Médiamétrie, RTI1 now ranks fourth behind private channels and only retains its news programs as a strong point in its schedule. Whether on weekdays or weekends, the channel is largely outpaced by its private competitors at all times of the day except during news programs.
The other channels, RTI2 and La 3, appear in 10th and 14th place in the ranking of all channels, with audience levels close to those of international thematic channels.
The task facing Jean-Martial ADOU, who is currently acting as interim CEO, and his eventual successor is immense, both in terms of regaining the trust of employees and suppliers, restoring the company's finances, and reviving the audience of channels whose content has greatly deteriorated in recent years in the face of highly dynamic private competitors.
The new Director General, Jean Martial ADOU, is an economist and senior civil servant. He has in-depth knowledge of the Ivorian administration and the media environment. After starting his career in civil engineering, he joined the office of the Minister of Communication in 2006 and was appointed Chief of Staff to the Ministers of Communication, Media, Francophonie, and the Digital Economy in 2018.