Industry & Retail

Côte d’Ivoire’s push for local processing provides the opportunity to add value beyond exportation of raw agricultural resources, specifically cocoa and cashews, thereby increasing revenue from the industrial sector. Major infrastructural projects aim to provide the required logistical environ¬ment for the emerging industrial base. Significant efforts remain necessary to increase competitiveness, particularly in tack¬ling energy costs, training the Ivorian workforce and improving access to financing. The modernisation of the country’s retail model and network is primarily based on rising demand driven by the emerging middle class. Retailers are gaining interest in penetrating the interior regions to access the larger population and prepare for expansion into surrounding sub-regions. To accomplish this, retailers will look to partnerships with local players in order to take on the informal play¬ers and improve logistical networks and supply chains. This chapter contains an interview with Jean-Louis Menudier, President, Large Industrial Firms Union of Côte d’Ivoire.