 | |
 Ivory Coast |  Taiwan |
|---|---|
| Diplomatic mission | |
| Taipei Representative Office in Ivory Coast | |
| Envoy | |
| Shin Chi-chih[1] | |
Ivory Coast–Taiwan relations refer to thebilateral relations betweenIvory Coast (officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire) and Taiwan (officially the Republic of China, ROC). Although Ivory Coast recognises thePeople's Republic of China (PRC) and thus does not maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, the two countries have engaged in economic, trade and representative-office cooperation in recent years.
Ivory Coast and Taiwan had official diplomatic relations since 1963.[2] On 3 March 1983, Ivory Coast officially switched recognition to the PRC, and concluded a joint communique with Beijing under which it recognised the PRC as the "only legitimate government representing the entire Chinese people".[3]
Following the severance of formal ties, Taiwan maintained limited economic/technical presence in Ivory Coast, including a Taiwan Economic Bureau until January 2017.[4]
On 13 November 2022,Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that it would reopen a representative office in Abidjan (Ivory Coast) to promote trade, investment and bilateral cooperation.[5]
In early 2023, Taiwan named Shin Chi-chih as its envoy for the Ivory Coast office to prepare for operations.[1]
As of July 2023, trade volume between Taiwan and Ivory Coast reportedly grew by 9.1% in the first six months following the reopening of the representative office, with trade at about US$33 million the previous year.[3]
Since there are no formal diplomatic ties, Taiwan is represented in Ivory Coast by theTaipei Representative Office in Ivory Coast, located inAbidjan.Ivory Coast does not maintain a counterpart official embassy in Taiwan, and its relations with Taiwan are handled unofficially via other offices.
Following the reopening of the Taiwanese representative office, Taiwan and Ivory Coast have stepped up cooperation in trade, agriculture, vocational training and investment. The growth of 9.1% in the first half of 2023 indicates a modest but dynamic economic link.[3]
Ivory Coast's economy is rich in cocoa, coffee, oil and gold and thus considered byTaiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a "spring-board" for Taiwanese business ventures throughout West Africa. While the absolute trade volume remains modest compared to Taiwan's major partners, the presence of the representative office signals Taiwan's interest in strengthening presence in the region.
Taiwan's renewed engagement in Ivory Coast also includes personnel exchanges, vocational training and technical cooperation. The representative office was explicitly established to facilitate personnel and trade fairs and to deepen contacts in education and agriculture.[6]
Although specific major humanitarian programs in Ivory Coast are less frequently reported compared to Taiwan's work in some other countries, Taiwan's representative office aims to support agricultural value-chain development and technical cooperation in the context of Ivory Coast's resource-rich and fast-growing economy.[7]
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