The project has been started in the capital city, Abidjan, with every corner of the country set to have its share sooner or later. The West
The project has been started in the capital city, Abidjan, with every corner of the country set to have its share sooner or later. The West African state of Ivory Coast has decided to rename all colonial streets as part of its plans to move away from French-ism.
The notable ones that have been renamed are the road linking the airport to Abidjan’s city centre is no longer named after former French president Valéry Giscard d’Estaing. It has been renamed after Felix Houphouet-Boigny, the man who led the Ivory Coast following its independence from France in 1960.
Abidjan’s Marseille Boulevard, named after the southern French port city, Marseille, is now Philippe Yace Boulevard, in honour of the country’s parliament’s first speaker.
That is how we effect changes of any sort!
The French colonies in West Africa are ready to move away from anything French, including education, culture, finance and governance, among many others.
The officer who is in charge of the renaming of the streets in Abidjan, Alphonse N’Guessan, an urban planner, said, “The old names weren’t necessarily used by our people.
“A name “must reflect our history, our culture. It simply “decided to modernise our system” for street names, N’Guessan said.
The nationwide project commenced in 2021, and it is expected to end by 2030, with every street and boulevard in the country set to be renamed.
An estimated $17M has been set aside for the huge project.
Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have recently made it clear to the world that they are no longer on good terms with their former masters and want to manage their affairs.
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