Ivory Coast is a West African country also called Côte d’Ivoire.
Yamoussoukro is Ivory Coast’s official political capital. Realistically, foreign embassies and the bulk of political institutions are found in Abidjan. In addition to being Ivory Coast’s biggest city, Abidjan is the country’s economic engine and is a strategically located port.
Although a much smaller city, Yamoussoukro is home to the world’s biggest church building. The massive Basilica of Our Lady of Peace covers 323,000 square feet (30,008 square meters). Yamoussoukro’s Basilica is also the highest domed church and the tallest Roman Catholic church in the world.
Nicknames for the larger city Abidjan include the Miami Beach of Africa and Babi, with the motto “major player in development.”
Abidjan boasts the world’s third-largest French-speaking population.
From an international trade perspective, Ivory Coast’s exports were worth US$12.7 billion in 2019. Its most valuable exported products are cocoa beans (28.1% of Ivory Coast’s global exports), gold (8.5%), crude oil (8.5%), medium petroleum oils and preparations (6.6%), natural rubber (5.8%), cashew nuts in shell (5.7%), cocoa paste (4.9%), cocoa butter, fat and oil (2.9%), uncombed cotton (2.8%) then light petroleum oils and preparations (1.9%), according to the International Trade Centre.
Capital Facts for Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast: Quick Reference
Famous People
Below, you will find a sampling for the most famous people born in Yamoussoukro, Ivory Coast.
- Félix Houphouët-Boigny, first president (born Oct. 18, 1905)
- Cheick Tioté, soccer player/footballer (born Jun. 21, 1986)
- Narcisse Bonan, soccer player/footballer (born Aug. 3, 1984)
- Kouadio Pascal Doubaï, soccer player/footballer (born May 22, 1992)
- Arthur Gnohéré, soccer player/footballer (born Nov. 20, 1978)
- Bássalia Sakañokó, soccer player/footballer (born Jun. 3, 1989)
- Aboubakar Bakayoko, soccer player/footballer (born Oct. 14, 1992)
- Seydou Doumbia, soccer player/footballer (born Dec. 31, 1987)
Note: Data for our Famous People tab was sourced from Google searches mostly targeting published Wikipedia articles specific to each person’s name.
Population
Demonym for a resident of Ivory Coast: Ivorian
Population: 194,530 (Yamoussoukro) in 2020
Density: 144 people per square mile (56 per square kilometer)
Population: 3,677,115 (Abidjan) in 2020
Density: 4,495 people per square mile (1,735 per square kilometer)
Population: 26,403,100 (Ivory Coast) at July 13, 2020
Density: 215 people per square mile (83 per square kilometer)
Median age for all Ivory Coast: 18.9 years old
Financial
GDP: US$117.1 billion in 2019 (Ivory Coast)
GDP per person: $4,457
Note: The above country-level GDP metrics are on a Purchasing Power Parity basis and are in U.S. dollars. Credible city GDP statistics for Yamoussoukro were unavailable.
Official currency used in Yamoussoukro: West African CFA franc
Geography
Capital landmarks: Basilica of Our Lady of Peace, Presidential Palace, Grand Mosque and the Abokouamekro Game Reserve
Research
Research Sources:
Brookings Institution, Global Metro Monitor Report (includes GDP data).
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Africa: Cote d’Ivoire.
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Major Urban Areas – Population.
Demographia, World Urban Area, 12th Annual Edition.
International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Databases.
International Trade Centre, Trade Map.
Official Government Website, Official Portal of the Government of Ivory Coast.
Wikimedia Commons, City Flags.
Note: Some city flags were unavailable. If so, attribution belongs to Wikimedia Commons for pertinent country flags.
Wikipedia, Yamoussoukro.
Wikipedia, Ivory Coast.
Wikipedia, List of tallest church buildings.
WorldOMeter, Côte d’Ivoire Population.
Ivory Coast won its independence from France on August 7, 1960. Fittingly named as Ivory Coast’s Independence Day, each August 7 is celebrated as a national holiday.
Yamoussoukro had an estimated population of 194,530 residents in 2020, living within a land area measuring 1,350 square miles (3,500 square kilometers).
In comparison, Abidjan is home to 3.7 million residents and has a land area equal to 818 square miles (2,119 square kilometers).
At the country level, Ivory Coast’s land territory extends over 122,780 square miles (318,000 square kilometers). The country’s population count was 26.4 million Ivorians as of July 2020.
Population density for Yamoussoukro is 144 people per square mile (56 per square kilometer), compared to 4,495 people per square mile (1,735 per square kilometer) for the much more concentrated Abidjan.
Zooming out to Ivory Coast’s overall land boundaries, the nation’s population density averages 215 people per square mile (83 per square kilometer).
