Third Party Mediation in the Cote D’Ivoire Conflict, 2002-2012

Abstract

Cote D’Ivoire which was considered as one of the richest and the most stable and peaceful countries in the West African sub-region immediately after independence under the leadership of Felix Houphouet-Boigny, witnessed major leadership crises in the early part of the 21^st century. As the economy of the country began to decline after the death of its founding leader, Houphouet Boigny, it started to witness periods of protracted power struggle. The country which enjoyed relative peace after independence under its founding president, started slipping into conflicts under successive leaders in the 21^st century. The Cote D’Ivoire conflict which started in 2002 and ended in 2012 attracted the attention of global, regional and sub-regional organisations who volunteered to mediate in the conflict and negotiate peace between the conflicting parties to bring the hostilities to an end. The third party mediation which included the United Nations (UN), the African Union (AU), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and France at one time or the other, got involved in mediation efforts aimed at bringing an end to the Ivorian conflict. This paper examines the background of the Cote D’Ivoire conflict and discusses the factors that were responsible for the conflict. The paper also reviews and evaluates third party mediation in the conflict, and concludes that external interests exacerbated the conflict, and that affected the peace process.