SECURITY/Ivory Coast: The budget allocated to defense in 2022 amounts to more than 378 billion FCFA

The Ivorian government is doing everything possible to prevent Côte d’Ivoire from suffering the same fate as Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Chad. The budget allocated to defense in 2022 amounts to more than 378 billion FCFA. It will be used to purchase state-of-the-art equipment and recruit nearly 3,000 soldiers.

To deal with the phenomenon of terrorism, the Ivorian State has allocated 378 billion CFA francs to the Ministry of Defense, informs our colleagues from Abidjan.net. This is a colossal sum that will be used to purchase military defense equipment and recruit soldiers into the ranks of the army.

In this war against terrorism, Côte d’Ivoire intends to carry out preventive actions. This is why the State, through the Ministry of Youth, has set up a special fund of 2 billion FCFA to finance projects for young people in the regions of Bagoué, Tchologo and Bounkani, all localities in the North , according to Abidjan.net

According to the newspaper, nearly 3,000 young people benefit from this emergency program which is consistent with the government’s second Social Program, one of the five axes of which is devoted to the fight against fragility in the northern border areas.

Alassane Ouattara and his ministers have decided to implement a support program for the integration of young people from the northern border areas.

This special program, the total cost of which is more than 8 billion FCFA, will, according to the Ivorian newspaper, make it possible to eventually offer training and integration opportunities to more than 19,000 young people.

In addition to these actions, Côte d’Ivoire inaugurated on June 10, 2021, the International Counter-Terrorism Academy in Jacqueville in the south of the country.

Côte d’Ivoire experienced its first terrorist attack on March 13, 2015 in Grand-Bassam, a town on the outskirts of Abidjan. On June 10, 2020, it was the turn of Kafolo, in the North Kong department, to suffer a terrorist attack. In the same month, another attack was perpetrated there. Also in June 2021, the locality of Tougbo, in the department of Bouna in the northeast was targeted. On October 19, 2021, terrorists targeted the defense and security forces in Téhini, still in the north of the country.

Yaovi AGBEGNIGAN