海角大神

Why youth voter apathy in Ivory Coast isn鈥檛 a rejection of democracy

Ivory Coast鈥檚 presidential election is Saturday, but in the bustling Abidjan neighborhood of Yopougon, waitress Grace Gbizi茅 made up her mind long ago.

There鈥檚 no point in voting, declares the 21-year-old as she darts between tables at a popular restaurant with a tray in her hands. 鈥淚t鈥檚 always the same faces.鈥�

The most familiar of those faces is President Alassane Ouattara, the octogenarian who has ruled Ivory Coast since 2010. With two of his main opponents barred from the polls, he is expected to easily win a fourth term.

That leaves many young people, like Ms. Gbizi茅, apathetic about casting a ballot, even as they yearn for a better political future.

鈥淭heir indifference isn鈥檛 a rejection of democracy itself,鈥� explains Rinaldo Depagne, deputy program director for Africa at the International Crisis Group. Rather, it is 鈥渇rustration at a system that fails to address their actual concerns.鈥�

A frustrated generation

That frustration isn鈥檛 unique to Ivory Coast. Across the continent, young Africans with poverty, unemployment, and corruption. say they are dissatisfied with how democracy is working.

Many Gen Z Africans see the problem as aging and out-of-touch leaders, and they are increasingly denouncing them.

Sometimes, those battles are waged at the ballot box. Last March, for instance, young Senegalese brought to power a firebrand 45-year-old opposition leader. And in October, Botswana鈥檚 young electorate unseated the party that had ruled there for more than half a century.

But in many countries, young people have grown cynical about the power of elections to make change. Polls show they are to vote than older generations. Instead, they often take their fight to the streets. This month, Gen Z-led protests in Madagascar toppled that country鈥檚 government. Meanwhile, mass political demonstrations have recently rattled the gates in Morocco, Kenya, and Mozambique.

In many countries in Africa, 鈥渄emocracy exists legally, but it is not truly inclusive,鈥� explains Ousmane Ndiaye, a Senegalese journalist and author of 鈥淎frica Against Democracy: Myths, Denial, and Peril.鈥� 鈥淢any young people see no value in it because decisions are made elsewhere, and these decisions don鈥檛 reflect their needs or concerns.鈥�

Ivory Coast embodies that tension. A of 18- to 24-year-olds found that they are optimistic about their future 鈥� and their country鈥檚. At the same time, many young Ivorians feel powerless to make political change. For instance, while three-quarters are younger than age 35, in the national assembly are older than 40.

Meanwhile, a constitutional revision a decade ago allowed Mr. Ouattara to seek additional terms, even though term limits technically remain in place. In this election, the country鈥檚 Constitutional Council has ruled his two most significant opponents 鈥� former president Laurent Gbagbo and former Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam 鈥� are ineligible to run. That clears the way for Mr. Ouattara to cruise to a fourth five-year term.

鈥淓very election, they talk about youth, projects, billions ... but our daily life doesn鈥檛 change,鈥� says Marie Tchetche as she records a video for her TikTok on a Yopougon street corner. Her mother sells pastries outside their home; her father drives a taxi. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 feel like voting because they鈥檙e all the same. They fight for their position, not for us.鈥�

Stability vs. democracy

Back at the restaurant where Ms. Gbizi茅 works, the rhythms of zouglou music thump from speakers, as conversations hum around plastic tables. Friends Cheick Abdel-Aziz Bamba and Siaka Micka毛l Diarrassouba, who work together selling secondhand cellphones, say they are both hopeful and fearful about the election.

鈥淲e just want calm elections, no war, never again,鈥� says Mr. Diarrassouba, referring to the civil war fought in Ivory Coast between 2002 and 2007, when the friends were young children. That conflict erupted after a failed coup split the country between a rebel-held north and a government-controlled south, fueling years of political and ethnic tension. Yopougon, a stronghold of southern loyalists, was hit hard by the violence.

After the 2010 election, the neighborhood became a battlefield again. Both Mr. Ouattara and his opponent, Mr. Gbabo, claimed victory. Violence ripped through the country. Yopougon, a stronghold of Mr. Gbabo鈥檚 supporters, was shelled by forces loyal to Mr. Ouattara. Dozens of civilians died.

Since then, 鈥渢he country has progressed and is stable now, but it鈥檚 time to think about young people. We have degrees, but no jobs,鈥� Mr. Diarrassouba explains.

For his part, Mr. Ouattara 鈥� who was born during World War II 鈥� bills himself as the candidate of the youth. 鈥淚 have always been committed to offering the best to our youth, so that you can start businesses, work, learn, and be independent,鈥� he at a rally last week.

Some young people say they believe it. He wants 鈥渁 better future,鈥� says Fatoumata Kouassi, an economics student. 鈥淗e鈥檚 a protector, and the country is stable. We just want him to stay.鈥�

Out of touch

Indeed, there is evidence in Yopougon of the president鈥檚 commitment. A bridge straddling the 脡bri茅 Lagoon was opened in 2024, connecting the neighborhood to Abidjan鈥檚 business district and easing chronic gridlock. Meanwhile, Yopougon General Hospital got a major upgrade in recent years, with new equipment and lab facilities. It now has reliable water and electricity for the first time.

Still, most of Yopougon鈥檚 residents work informally and live hand-to-mouth. In the neighborhood鈥檚 narrow streets, young men repair phones under makeshift awnings, while women sell grilled fish, secondhand clothes, or mobile credit from wooden stalls. Only about 55 percent of girls complete secondary school.

At the restaurant, Ms. Gbizi茅, the waitress, jokes that Ivory Coast鈥檚 leaders are out of touch with that reality. She says she once dreamed of being a nurse, but had to drop out of school when she gave birth to her son. Now, on a busy night at the restaurant, she is lucky to pocket 5,000 CFA francs ($9).

鈥淧oliticians should come work here themselves,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hey鈥檇 see what life is really like.鈥�