Presented at the opening of the sixth edition of the African Digital Week, organized on June 1 and 2, 2026 in Abidjan, this strategy is a continuation of the reforms undertaken since the implementation of the National Digital Development Strategy 2021-2025. According to the Official Government Portal, it aims to respond to new challenges linked to emerging technologies and digital sovereignty. The first priority concerns connectivity and digital access. The government intends to continue the extension of infrastructure in order to improve territorial coverage and reduce disparities between urban centers and less served areas. This issue appears decisive in a context where the country is recording a strong increase in digital uses. According to statistics from the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Côte d'Ivoire (ARTCI), the market had more than 53 million mobile subscriptions in 2024, with a penetration rate of 172.2% while the number of mobile internet subscribers stood at nearly 30 million for a penetration rate of 93.7%.

The second pillar concerns the digital transformation of public administration. The objective is to accelerate the dematerialization of services in order to simplify administrative procedures and improve access for citizens and businesses to public services. This orientation builds on the progress already recorded in recent years in the field of e-government. United Nations data show that Côte d'Ivoire's e-government development index increased from 0.4457 in 2020 to 0.5587 in 2024. Innovation constitutes the third axis of this strategy. The country wishes to encourage the emergence of a more competitive ecosystem through support for young technological companies, the development of new digital services and the strengthening of investments in infrastructure. This orientation comes as Abidjan is gradually asserting itself as one of the main technological hubs in French-speaking Africa. Artificial intelligence is also emerging among the priorities of the national digital strategy.

The authorities aim to promote the appropriation of this technology in different sectors of activity. Agriculture, health, education, financial services and even industry could benefit from applications linked to artificial intelligence in order to improve productivity and the quality of services. Cybersecurity and digital trust are among the other major pillars of the strategy. With the proliferation of electronic transactions and the progression of dematerialized services, questions relating to data protection and system security are becoming increasingly important. The authorities thus intend to strengthen national capacities in order to guarantee a safer digital environment for businesses and populations.

The development of digital skills is also a central issue. The rise of emerging technologies creates new needs for qualified human resources. Developers, artificial intelligence engineers, cybersecurity experts, cloud computing specialists and even data analysts are among the profiles whose demand is expected to grow in the coming years. The modernization of the Ivory Coast Post complements the main axes of this vision. The objective is to adapt postal services to the changes brought about by the digitalization of the economy and to support the development of e-commerce and digital services.

Expected benefits for the economy and employment

Beyond these different pillars, the expected benefits concern the entire Ivorian economy. According to the World Bank, the digital economy could become one of the main engines of growth on the African continent thanks to improved productivity and the emergence of new markets. The contribution of digital technology to Ivorian gross domestic product could reach 15% by 2030, compared to around 6% currently. Small and medium-sized businesses are among the first potential beneficiaries of this transformation. The use of digital tools makes it possible to improve management, access new markets and strengthen competitiveness. The development of e-commerce, mobile payment solutions, data centers and digital services should also encourage the emergence of new economic activities.

Through this strategy for 2035, Côte d'Ivoire above all displays its ambition to consolidate its status as a regional technological platform. Building on its economic weight in West Africa and the progress made in recent years in the telecommunications sector, it intends to attract more investments and make digital one of the pillars of its economic transformation over the next decade.