'Time to move on': France faces gradual decline of influence in Africa

Anaelle JONAH

2 January 2025 at 1:41 pm·1-min read

Ivory Coast announced on Tuesday that French troops will begin withdrawing in January as part of a shift towards strengthening its own military forces. This move follows broader trends across West Africa, with nations like Senegal and Chad also reevaluating their defence partnerships and asserting greater sovereignty.

French forces will begin withdrawing from Ivory Coast starting in January, President Alassane Ouattara said on Tuesday, marking another step in the former colonial power’s military retreat from West Africa.

In a televised year-end address, Ouattara said the departure was a result of Ivory Coast’s growing military capabilities.

“We can be proud of our army, whose modernisation is now complete,” he said. “In this context, we have decided on the coordinated and organised withdrawal of French forces.”

The French troops stationed at the 43rd BIMA marine infantry battalion in Abidjan’s Port-Bouet suburb, comprising some 600 soldiers, will hand over the base to Ivorian forces this month, Ouattara added.

A gradual shift

Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye outlined his country’s timeline during a New Year’s address, stating that all foreign troops would leave starting 2025.

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A gradual shift

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