Yamoussoukro
Encyclopedia
The District of Yamoussoukro ˌ is the official political capital and administrative capital city of Côte d'Ivoire
, while the economic capital of the country is Abidjan
. As of 2010, it was estimated to have 242,744 inhabitants. and located 240 kilometres (149.1 mi) north-west of Abidjan, the administrative center on the coast, upon rolling hills and plains, the municipality covers 3500 sqkm and is coterminous with the department
of the same name
. The department and municipality are split into four sub-prefectures: Attiégouakro, Didiévi, Tié-diékro and the Commune of Yamoussoukro. In total, the district contains 169 settlements.
In 1998, the city had about 155,803 inhabitants. It is the fourth most populous city in Côte d'Ivoire, after Abidjan, Bouaké
, and Daloa
.
The current governor of the district is N'Dri Koffi Apollinaire.
Yamoussoukro is actually pronounced "Yam-So-Kro" by all Ivorians, which is the correct way to pronounce it. Sometimes it's possible to hear "Ya-Mu-So-Kro" but in any case, the second "U" is silent.
Diplomatic and commercial relations were then established, but in 1909, on the orders of the Chief of Djamlabo, the Akoué revolted against the administration. Bonzi station, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) from Yamoussoukro on the Bouaflé
road, was set on fire, and the French administrator, Simon Maurice, was spared only by the intervention of Kouassi N'Go. This respected former leader persuaded the Akoué not to wage a war which could only have turned into a disaster.
As the situation returned to normal, Simon Maurice, judging that Bonzi had become unsafe, decided to transfer the French military station to Yamoussoukro, where the French Administration built a pyramid to the memory of Kouassi N'Go, Chief of the Akoué. In homage to queen Yamousso, N'Gokro was renamed Yamoussoukro.
In 1919, the civil station of Yamoussoukro was removed. Félix Houphouët-Boigny
became the leader of the village in 1939. A long period passed wherein Yamoussoukro, still a small agricultural town, remained in the shadows. This continued until after the Second World War, which saw the creation of the African Agricultural Trade Union, as well as the first conferences of its chief. However, it was only with independence that Yamoussoukro finally started to rise.
made ambitious plans and started to build. One day in 1965, later called the Great Lesson of Yamoussoukro, he visited the plantations with the leaders of the county, inviting them to transpose to their own villages the efforts and agricultural achievements of the region. On 21 July 1977, Houphouët offered his plantations to the State.
In March 1983, President Félix Houphouët-Boigny
made Yamoussoukro the political and administrative capital of Côte d'Ivoire
, as the city was his birthplace. This marked the fourth movement of the country's capital city in a century. Côte d'Ivoire's previous capital cities were Grand-Bassam
(1893), Bingerville
(1900), and Abidjan
(1933). The majority of economic activity still takes place in Abidjan
.
Yamoussoukro is also the site of what is claimed to be the largest Christian place of worship on Earth: The Basilica of Our Lady of Peace of Yamoussoukro
, consecrated by Pope John Paul II
on 10 September 1990.
Also noteworthy are the Kossou Dam
, the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Foundation, the PDCI-RDA House, the various schools of the Félix-Houphouët-Boigny Polytechnic Institute, the international airport (with an average of six hundred passengers and 36 flights in 1995, it is one of two airports in Africa (with Gbadolite
) that could accommodate the Concorde
), the Town Hall, the Protestant Temple, the Mosque, and the Palace of Hosts.
On 6 November 2004, Yamoussoukro Airport
was attacked by French infantry after military aircraft from the airport bombed a UN peacekeeper
base as well as rebel targets, 9 French peacekeepers and one U.S. civilian were killed. Two Ivory Coast Sukhoi Su-25
aircraft and several Mil Mi-24
helicopters were destroyed, which was most of the country's air forces. Mobs and rebels tried to attack the French forces after the airport raid.
On 30 March 2011, the city of Yamoussoukro fell to forces led by the democratically elected Alassane Ouattara
, who had been recognized internationally as the legitimate president of Côte d'Ivoire.
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
, while the economic capital of the country is Abidjan
Abidjan
Abidjan is the economic and former official capital of Côte d'Ivoire, while the current capital is Yamoussoukro. it was the largest city in the nation and the third-largest French-speaking city in the world, after Paris, and Kinshasa but before Montreal...
. As of 2010, it was estimated to have 242,744 inhabitants. and located 240 kilometres (149.1 mi) north-west of Abidjan, the administrative center on the coast, upon rolling hills and plains, the municipality covers 3500 sqkm and is coterminous with the department
Departments of Côte d'Ivoire
The regions of Côte d'Ivoire are divided into 81 departments .A 1978 law created 27 self governing Communes in Cote 'Ivoire , alongside Sous-Prefectures, dividing each of the Departments. The Commune, , is administered by a Municipal Council, presided over by a Mayor...
of the same name
Yamoussoukro Department
Yamoussoukro Department is one of the departments of Côte d'Ivoire. It is one of three departments of Lacs Region and neighbours the district of Yamoussoukro....
. The department and municipality are split into four sub-prefectures: Attiégouakro, Didiévi, Tié-diékro and the Commune of Yamoussoukro. In total, the district contains 169 settlements.
In 1998, the city had about 155,803 inhabitants. It is the fourth most populous city in Côte d'Ivoire, after Abidjan, Bouaké
Bouaké
Bouaké is the second largest city in Côte d'Ivoire, with a population of 775,300 . It is the main urban settlement of the Bouaké Department with a population exceeding 1.2 million, in the Vallée du Bandama Region...
, and Daloa
Daloa
Daloa is a town in Daloa Department of Côte d'Ivoire, lying west of Yamoussoukro in Haut-Sassandra Region. It has a population of over 100,000. The town is a regional capital and an important trading centre, particularly for cocoa...
.
The current governor of the district is N'Dri Koffi Apollinaire.
Yamoussoukro is actually pronounced "Yam-So-Kro" by all Ivorians, which is the correct way to pronounce it. Sometimes it's possible to hear "Ya-Mu-So-Kro" but in any case, the second "U" is silent.
Colonial period
Queen Yamousso, the niece of Kouassi N'Go, ran the village of N'Gokro in 1901 at the time of French colonization. The village then comprised 475 inhabitants, and was one of 129 Akoué villages.Diplomatic and commercial relations were then established, but in 1909, on the orders of the Chief of Djamlabo, the Akoué revolted against the administration. Bonzi station, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) from Yamoussoukro on the Bouaflé
Bouaflé
Bouaflé is a town in Bouaflé Department in Côte d'Ivoire's Marahoué Region. Bouaflé Town is the capital of Marahoué Region....
road, was set on fire, and the French administrator, Simon Maurice, was spared only by the intervention of Kouassi N'Go. This respected former leader persuaded the Akoué not to wage a war which could only have turned into a disaster.
As the situation returned to normal, Simon Maurice, judging that Bonzi had become unsafe, decided to transfer the French military station to Yamoussoukro, where the French Administration built a pyramid to the memory of Kouassi N'Go, Chief of the Akoué. In homage to queen Yamousso, N'Gokro was renamed Yamoussoukro.
In 1919, the civil station of Yamoussoukro was removed. Félix Houphouët-Boigny
Félix Houphouët-Boigny
Félix Houphouët-Boigny , affectionately called Papa Houphouët or Le Vieux, was the first President of Côte d'Ivoire. Originally a village chief, he worked as a doctor, an administrator of a plantation, and a union leader, before being elected to the French Parliament and serving in a number of...
became the leader of the village in 1939. A long period passed wherein Yamoussoukro, still a small agricultural town, remained in the shadows. This continued until after the Second World War, which saw the creation of the African Agricultural Trade Union, as well as the first conferences of its chief. However, it was only with independence that Yamoussoukro finally started to rise.
Since independence
After 1964, the President Félix Houphouët-BoignyFélix Houphouët-Boigny
Félix Houphouët-Boigny , affectionately called Papa Houphouët or Le Vieux, was the first President of Côte d'Ivoire. Originally a village chief, he worked as a doctor, an administrator of a plantation, and a union leader, before being elected to the French Parliament and serving in a number of...
made ambitious plans and started to build. One day in 1965, later called the Great Lesson of Yamoussoukro, he visited the plantations with the leaders of the county, inviting them to transpose to their own villages the efforts and agricultural achievements of the region. On 21 July 1977, Houphouët offered his plantations to the State.
In March 1983, President Félix Houphouët-Boigny
Félix Houphouët-Boigny
Félix Houphouët-Boigny , affectionately called Papa Houphouët or Le Vieux, was the first President of Côte d'Ivoire. Originally a village chief, he worked as a doctor, an administrator of a plantation, and a union leader, before being elected to the French Parliament and serving in a number of...
made Yamoussoukro the political and administrative capital of Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
, as the city was his birthplace. This marked the fourth movement of the country's capital city in a century. Côte d'Ivoire's previous capital cities were Grand-Bassam
Grand-Bassam
Grand-Bassam is a city in Côte d'Ivoire, lying east of Abidjan. It was the French colonial capital city from 1893 until 1896, when the administration was transferred to Bingerville after a bout of yellow fever. The city remained a key seaport until the growth of Abidjan from the...
(1893), Bingerville
Bingerville
Bingerville is a city in south eastern Côte d'Ivoire, lying on the Ébrié Lagoon. Originally a market town, it grew as the capital of the then colony from 1909 until 1934. It is named after Louis-Gustave Binger, a former French colonial governor...
(1900), and Abidjan
Abidjan
Abidjan is the economic and former official capital of Côte d'Ivoire, while the current capital is Yamoussoukro. it was the largest city in the nation and the third-largest French-speaking city in the world, after Paris, and Kinshasa but before Montreal...
(1933). The majority of economic activity still takes place in Abidjan
Abidjan
Abidjan is the economic and former official capital of Côte d'Ivoire, while the current capital is Yamoussoukro. it was the largest city in the nation and the third-largest French-speaking city in the world, after Paris, and Kinshasa but before Montreal...
.
Highlights
Basilica of Our Lady of Peace of Yamoussoukro
The Basilica of Our Lady of Peace of Yamoussoukro is a Roman Catholic minor basilica dedicated to Our Lady of Peace in Yamoussoukro, the administrative capital of Côte d'Ivoire . The basilica was constructed between 1985 and 1989 at a cost of $300 million...
, consecrated by Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
on 10 September 1990.
Also noteworthy are the Kossou Dam
Kossou Dam
The Kossou Power Station is a hydroelectric power plant of the Bandama River in Ivory Coast. It has a power generating capacity of 176 MW enough to power over 118,000 homesThe dam created the largest lake in Cote D'Ivoire, Lake Kossou...
, the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Foundation, the PDCI-RDA House, the various schools of the Félix-Houphouët-Boigny Polytechnic Institute, the international airport (with an average of six hundred passengers and 36 flights in 1995, it is one of two airports in Africa (with Gbadolite
Gbadolite
Gbadolite or Gbado-Lite is the capital of the Nord-Ubangi District in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The town is located south of the Ubangi River at the border to the Central African Republic and northeast of the national capital Kinshasa...
) that could accommodate the Concorde
Concorde
Aérospatiale-BAC Concorde was a turbojet-powered supersonic passenger airliner, a supersonic transport . It was a product of an Anglo-French government treaty, combining the manufacturing efforts of Aérospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation...
), the Town Hall, the Protestant Temple, the Mosque, and the Palace of Hosts.
On 6 November 2004, Yamoussoukro Airport
Yamoussoukro Airport
Yamoussoukro Airport is a regional airport serving Yamoussoukro in Côte d'Ivoire.On November 6, 2004, Yamoussoukro Airport was attacked by French infantry after military aircraft from the airport bombed a UN peacekeeper base as well as rebel targets, 9 French peacekeepers and one U.S. civilian...
was attacked by French infantry after military aircraft from the airport bombed a UN peacekeeper
Peacekeeping
Peacekeeping is an activity that aims to create the conditions for lasting peace. It is distinguished from both peacebuilding and peacemaking....
base as well as rebel targets, 9 French peacekeepers and one U.S. civilian were killed. Two Ivory Coast Sukhoi Su-25
Sukhoi Su-25
The Sukhoi Su-25 is a single-seat, twin-engine jet aircraft developed in the Soviet Union by the Sukhoi Design Bureau. It was designed to provide close air support for the Soviet Ground Forces. The first prototype made its maiden flight on 22 February 1975...
aircraft and several Mil Mi-24
Mil Mi-24
The Mil Mi-24 is a large helicopter gunship and attack helicopter and low-capacity troop transport with room for 8 passengers. It is produced by Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant and operated since 1972 by the Soviet Air Force, its successors, and by over thirty other nations.In NATO circles the export...
helicopters were destroyed, which was most of the country's air forces. Mobs and rebels tried to attack the French forces after the airport raid.
On 30 March 2011, the city of Yamoussoukro fell to forces led by the democratically elected Alassane Ouattara
Alassane Ouattara
Alassane Dramane Ouattara is an Ivorian politician who has been President of Côte d'Ivoire since 2011. An economist by profession, Ouattara worked for the International Monetary Fund and the Central Bank of West African States , and he was the Prime Minister of Côte d'Ivoire from November 1990 to...
, who had been recognized internationally as the legitimate president of Côte d'Ivoire.