Côte d'Ivoire

Working environment

• Despite relatively peaceful presidential elections in 2015, several obstacles hindered the consolidation of peace and reconciliation in Côte d’Ivoire, including post-electoral violence. The root causes of violence included tension over land tenure, distrust between communities, and the ongoing presence of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in host communities. 
• The outbreak of the Ebola virus in the subregion hampered UNHCR activities, especially with regards to the repatriation of Ivorian refugees as borders were temporarily closed.
• Following accession to the two United Nations conventions on statelessness in October 2013, the Government continued to devote its efforts to providing late birth certificates and facilitating the acquisition of Ivorian nationality through a simplified procedure.

Population trends

• At the end of 2015, the refugee and asylum seekers population in Cote d’Ivoire was 2,629. The majority were Liberian exempt from the cessation clauses. 
• At the time of the Ebola virus outbreak in Liberia and Guinea and the subsequent closure of the borders, there remained some 60,000 Ivorian refugees, who were mainly in Liberia, Ghana, Guinea and Togo. 
• In 2015, there also remained an estimated 700,000 persons who were stateless or at risk of statelessness. In response, a total of 5,300 nationality certificates were distributed.

Achievements and impact

• Some 92 staff from UNHCR, partners and government officials received training on the prevention and response to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). 
• Nearly 80 refugees were trained on SGBV prevention and response mechanisms, and two awareness-raising campaigns on SGBV prevention and response were also conducted. Over 1,100 refugees received psychosocial support. 
• With respect to statelessness, some 20 training sessions were held, in which 740 government officials participated. Nine public awareness campaigns were carried out, and the nationality of 5,300 persons was confirmed. More than 1,000 children were registered and received birth certificates, and nearly 5,900 individuals were registered and received identification documents through the late birth registration procedure. 

Unmet needs    

• Funding constraints hampered the provision of sufficient reintegration support to returnees deemed vulnerable.
• Refugee children of secondary school age were not included in education programmes because of the high cost of schooling.
• Owing to limited financial resources, health care was only provided to persons with specific needs.
• Insufficient support was provided to the Government of Côte d’Ivoire in the handling of the heavy caseload of stateless persons or populations at risk of statelessness. For example, there were insufficient resources to carry out an identification exercise.

Working environment

One of UNHCR’s main priorities in Côte d’Ivoire is the voluntary repatriation of Ivorian refugees in neighbouring countries. More than 12,000 refugees have been repatriated during the ­first semester of 2014.

UNHCR’s operation in Côte d’Ivoire has been signi­ficantly affected by the Ebola virus outbreak since the ­first quarter of 2014. Following the official border closure with Guinea and Liberia in August, the voluntary repatriation of Ivorian refugees has been suspended until further notice.

With the exception of recent attacks in the south-western border region of Côte d’Ivoire, the security conditions throughout the country remain stable.

In light of the UN Secretary-General’s choice of Côte d’Ivoire as a pilot country for a durable solutions strategy, UNHCR will support the Government in designing and implementing targeted responses to the needs of returnees, former internally displaced people (IDPs), stateless people and host communities.

UNHCR is committed to finding solutions, either through local integration or resettlement, for remaining Liberians and Rwandans living in Côte d’Ivoire whose refugee status was maintained after the implementation of the cessation clause. Those individuals exempt from the cessation clauses will continue to receive international protection.

In acceding to the 1954 and 1961 Conventions on Statelessness in late 2013, the Ivorian Government took an important step towards reducing the number of stateless people in Côte d’Ivoire. UNHCR will continue to support such efforts by identifying stateless people across the country and advocate for concrete measures to protect them.

Needs and strategies

In 2015, UNHCR will continue to advocate for the adoption and implementation of a national asylum law on behalf of refugees living in Côte d’Ivoire. If adopted, the organization will engage in capacity-building exercises targeted at newly-appointed local officials in border areas that have not traditionally hosted refugees, and raise awareness throughout Ivorian society to ensure that the content and implications of the law are well understood.

To support the UN Secretary-General’s Policy Committee Decision on Durable Solutions and assist the Government in its national development plan, UNHCR will implement community-based programmes to address the needs and improve the living conditions of refugees, returnees, former IDPs and stateless people in major areas of settlement.

Building on momentum generated by the launch of UNHCR’s global campaign to eradicate statelessness, the Of­fice will work with the Ministry of Justice, Human Rights and Public Liberties to identify people who are stateless or at risk of statelessness, and support national institutions in providing these individuals with civil status documentation. By helping them obtain confi­rmation of nationality, UNHCR will help tens of thousands of people access basic social services to which they are entitled.