Embassy NewsCentre

Welcome to the NewsCentre of the American Embassy in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire

The NewsCentre is your source for information on the United States and Cote d'Ivoire. The largest embassy news site of its kind, the NewsCentre contains comprehensive and up-to-date news from the Embassy, access to photos, speeches, multimedia products, and background information on American policies, along with hundreds of online resources specifically designed for journalists.  For journalists and those looking for the latest developments from the United States and Cote d'Ivoire, this is your site.

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American Corner CIRES Honors US Embassy Desiree Bartley

Over sixty AC members gathered June 28, 2008 at the American Corner CIRES in Abidjan to express their gratitude to the U.S. Embassy Office Manager, Desiree Bartley. In 2006, she was one of the trainers who conducted an English Teaching Seminar, and volunteered to share her experience in business English and job interview skills. Her most memorable activity was an informal discussion on "American Hospitality" that she hosted at her residence on October 29, 2005. The program gathered about 40 people, including 10 American diplomats. The American Corner members noted her dedication over the past several years in working with the American Corner community to build bridges between the people of the United States and Cote d’Ivoire. The celebration focused on traditional Ivorian culture and included singing, dancing and feasting. She received support from other US Embassy diplomats and colleagues including the Deputy Public Affairs Officer, Etta Toure.

American Political Scientist and Research Associate Speaks on U.S. Election

Dr. Sheldon Gellar, an American political scientist and research associate, who visited Côte d’Ivoire from June 7 to June 14, 2008 spoke on the U.S. elections. Other issues including the importance of free and fair elections in a democratic society, grassroots democracy in the U.S., and the involvement of youth and women’s organizations in the electoral process, were also addressed during conferences organized by the U. S. Embassy in Abidjan, Yamoussoukro and Bouake. More than one thousand people took part in the programs.... (more) 

Students in Tiassalé take part in HIV/AIDS awareness campaign  

About 2000 students from high schools in Tiassalé took part May 29 in the US Embassy’s “HIV/AIDS Caravan” program. Designed to create awareness and build capacity to combat and prevent HIV/AIDS among students, as well as the general population, the program also brought together Ivorian government officials, local medical officers, teachers and representatives of NGOs involved in the struggle against the spread of the disease.... (more)

Cross-Cultural Dialogue – A Conversation with American Students

On May 28, 2008, visiting students from Oral Roberts University and the University of Virginia had a lively information sharing conversation with English speaking students from the universities of Bouake and Cocody in Côte d’Ivoire.... (more) 

The Role of the Media during Elections – A Discussion in Cote d'Ivoire

Over 70 Ivorian journalists, editors, members of the Ministry of Communication and Prime Minister's Office, representatives of the Independent Electoral Commission, media regulatory bodies, NGOs and university students participated in a lively discussion with veteran journalist Eduardo Cue via a Digital Video Conference hosted by ARS Paris.  Focusing first on the role of the media in the U.S. presidential election, debate later turned to the realities of being a journalist reporting on the presidential election scheduled for November 30 in Cote d'Ivoire.... (more) (Photo Gallery)

DVC on U.S. Presidential Primaries

The US Embassy in Abidjan organized April 29, 2008 a lively Digital Video Cconference on the US Presidential Primaries. The topic was of great interest to the Ivorian audience as long-delayed presidential elections have recently been set for November 30, 2008. Paris-based Professor Arun Kapil, an expert on the US electoral system, spoke on various aspects of the primary system and the current electoral campaign in the U.S. during this program. The audience included members of parliament, representatives of political parties, and leaders of youth associations and NGOs. They agreed that the American electoral system, although one of the oldest in the world, continues to be a model for other countries. Noting the violence in Côte d'Ivoire associated with the last election, members of the audience pledged to adopt a positive attitude during the upcoming electoral campaign and accept the final results. They looked forward to additional DVCs on the elections and indicated they planned to discuss what they had learned about democracy with others.

U.S. to help villages across Cote d'Ivoire

On April 8, 2008 U.S. Ambassador to Cote d’Ivoire Wanda L. Nesbitt signed agreements with nine Ivorian non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to finance projects that will contribute to the development of villages throughout the country. The agreements signed total seventy thousand U.S. dollars ($70,000); the funds are awarded under the terms of the Ambassador’s Special Self Help Fund.... (more) 

PEPFAR budget rises to record $120 million to expand fight against HIV/AIDS in Cote d’Ivoire

The U.S. government’s PEPFAR initiative has approved a plan to spend $120.5 million USD (about 51.831.298.290 FCFA) to extend the fight against HIV/AIDS in Cote d’Ivoire, an increase of 43% from the previous fiscal year.The budget, covering the period April 1, 2008 – March 31, 2009, will support 37 prime partners and more than 75 subpartners providing HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment services throughout the country.... (more)

American Corner CIRES hosts conference on Women's History Month

On March 15, 2008 the American Corner CIRES hosted a conference to commemorate Women's History Month. The forum brought together women including professionals and university and secondary school students. Sarah Callinan, Head of the US Embassy Medical Unit, Pamela Lafontaine, Head of the Open Source Center and Etta Toure, Deputy Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy spoke about women's leadership with a special focus on their specific domain of activities including media, medicine and the military. Speakers shared their experience of social and professional achievements in fields that are usually considered as men's jobs. Participants held a lively discussion on the role of women in Cote d'Ivoire and pledged to assume the challenge to contribute to every level of social development.

Youth Leadership Development Program

In celebration of International Women’s Month, the U.S. Embassy Public Affairs Section organized a conference on ‘Women leadership development’ on Wednesday March 5, 2008. This conference,  which is designed for young girls from 10 to 18 years old particularly top of their grade levels, gathered more than 130 participants including students, teachers, media professionals and school principals from 16 public, private and confessional High Schools in Abidjan. This conference was designed to empower and energize young girls.... (more)

Celebration of the Black History Month at the US Embassy in Cote d’Ivoire

The US Embassy in Côte d’Ivoire organized a beautiful concert at the Ambassador’s Residence on March 1, 2008 in Abidjan to round off a month-long Black History Month Celebration. The show featured an Ivorian renowned gospel group called "Domination", which sang in duo with "A Medley of Voices", the US Embassy’s vocal group. After Ambassador Wanda L. Nesbitt’s welcome address, the two groups entertained the guests through songs like "Down by the riverside"; "Go down Moses"; "Rock my soul"; "Soon and very soon"; and "Thanks you very much." This concert was past of a series of activities including conferences and film shows organized by the US Embassy to honor and celebrate the extraordinary accomplishments and the rich heritage of African Americans who helped bring the United States closer to fulfilling its founding ideals.... (more) 

Ambassador Nesbitt Speaks on Rosa Parks at the Teachers' Training College in Abidjan

Ambassador Wanda L. Nesbitt underscored the legacy of Rosa Parks and the impact of the civil rights struggle on the life of African Americans in US. The US Ambassador to Cote d’Ivoire was speaking during a film show and a conference organized February 13, 2008 by the embassy to commemorate the African American History Month at the English Department of the Teachers' Training College in Abidjan. The event brought together more than 350 people including lecturers, teachers, and the management of the school, and featured an historical documentary entitled: "Rosa Parks – Mighty Times." The aim was to reach out at students as well as teachers whose major topics focused on American culture and history.

Ivoirian Women Pledge to Use American Rights Activists as Role Models

The U.S. Embassy Public Affairs Section organized February 23, 2008 a conference to commemorate the African American History Month at the American Corner in Tiassalé, a city located about 130 km north of Abidjan. The objective of this activity was to give American Corner patrons the opportunity to test their English speaking skills. But more importantly, the American Corner wanted its patrons to have the chance to talk about the United States with American diplomats in Côte d’Ivoire. More than 80 people including students, teachers, headmasters, civil servants, the local council members, the mayor, Yapi Lambert, and his town council attended the program, which allowed a direct contact between the diplomats and Ivorians in an informal setting.... (more) 

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American Corner-CIRES celebrates Martin Luther King Jr

On Saturday February 02, 2008 American Corner-CIRES Abidjan hosted a three-hour program to celebrate African American History Month. After viewing the ARS Paris provided video "Martin Luther King Jr., A Man of Peace," participants examined the civil rights leader's non-violent philosophy. Panel participants included the Embassy's Administrative Officer, who had marched with Dr. King; the Head of the English Department of the National Teacher Training School; and the Secretary General of an association of English clubs. The eighty participants, mostly students, engaged in a rich and active discussion about the meaning of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s legacy today, with many saying they hoped to learn from his ideas how to extricate Cote d'Ivoire from its period of civil war and instability to sustain the peaceful reunification of the country. This theme was stressed in newspaper coverage of the event and national Ivorian TV broadcast a story on the program twice.

Directors Receive Training on Programming in American Corner

Five American Corner directors were trained on January 24, 2008 on how to run an American Corner. The training mainly focused on programming in American Corners, including grant writing, fund raising, marketing and reporting on American Corner activities. Visiting IRO, Anne Johnson, Angèle Gnako and Honore Guy Koffi, respectively Cultural Affairs Specialist and Cultural Affairs Assistant, led the session, which was designed to increase awareness and understanding of the role and purpose of American Corners. Participants also evaluated and implemented ideas for successful programming.  The day-long session offered the directors of the American Corners the opportunity to strengthen their knowledge in US information resources available on the Internet, and to share their experiences and ideas. 

Students in Sikensi Sensitized on How Fight HIV/AIDS

The town hall of Sikensi was filled to its capacity on January 30, 2008 when US Embassy in Abidjan took its program dubbed "HIV/AIDS Caravan" to this city located about one hour off the capital. More than thousand students, teachers and local officials attended the two-hour program. It was designed to create awareness in combating and preventing this disease amongst the students.... (more)

Press Release for Visit of Ambassador Mark Lagon

Ambassador Mark P. Lagon, Director of the U.S. State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, will visit Cote d’Ivoire January 23-24, 2008. The primary purpose of his trip is to consult with senior government officials and non-governmental leaders regarding the progress Cote d’Ivoire has made in combating trafficking in persons for the purposes of child labor and sexual exploitation.... (more) 

Promoting tolerance through the arts

On January 17, 2008, a returnee International Visitor spoke on "promoting tolerance through the arts" during a conference organized by the US Embassy in Côte d’Ivoire. The famous Ivorian singer Oren’Tchy (Kablan Kacou Michel) used the occasion to share his American experience with an audience composed of artists, journalists, NGO activists and the students association. The IV alumnus was one of the rare artists to sound the alarm bell on a threatening instability in Côte d’Ivoire. The program was aimed at spreading the ideal of tolerance amongst Ivorians in order to help consolidate peace and reconciliation in Côte d’Ivoire.

Visit of the U.S. Congressional delegation to Côte d’Ivoire

Today, January 9, a U.S. Congressional delegation, consisting of U.S. Representative Eliot Engel, and Senators Thomas Harkin and Bernard Sanders concluded a two-day trip to Cote d'Ivoire to see first hand how stakeholders are implementing the Harkin-Engel Protocol.  During the visit, the delegation had the opportunity to visit a typical cocoa-producing community (Kouamekro, near Tiassalé and Divo in the Sud-Bandama Department) and engage in a dialogue with cocoa producing families and assess the assistance given to the village by the ICI, the International Cocoa Initiative, a foundation created under the protocol.... (read full text of the statement) (PDF Photo album) (Photo Gallery)

US Embassy Hosts Seminar on Independent Journalism for Ivorian Young Journalists

December 13-14, 2007, the US Embassy in Abidjan used the Handbook of Independent Journalism to train about 40 young Ivorian journalists drawn from both public and independent media outlets. The training was led by six veteran Ivorian journalists and media consultants; three of them were former International Visitors. With no specialized journalism school in Cote d’Ivoire, most journalists in this country – especially the younger generation of reporters – are either graduates from communication and public relations schools or other degree-holders who get trained on the job. As one trainer put it, "They [the young journalists] ignore the basics of the profession and hence become the mouthpieces of interest groups – especially political leaders." ... (more)