Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the political and security situation in the Ivory Coast.

The UK Government has a strong partnership with Côte d'Ivoire. Stability and inclusive economic growth are shared priorities, with a view to consolidating peace after a decade of crisis and uncertainty.

The upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections are the responsibility of the Government of Côte d'Ivoire, all political parties, and the Ivoirian people. Peaceful, free and credible elections, in line with international law, are an opportunity to build long term peace and stability in Côte d'Ivoire. We encourage all parties to work towards this goal.

We are concerned about reports of protests and violence, which resulted in a dozen deaths in August. We urge all parties to participate responsibly, engage fully in the process, avoid the use of inflammatory language, and denounce violence and hate speech. To support these aims, alongside members of the international community, our Embassy in Abidjan is working closely with the United Nations Development Programme to support fair and transparent elections. This includes £300,000 of funding to support dialogue and prevention management of the risks of electoral violence. This includes increasing the number of women mediators involved in election management and organising meetings between security forces, civil society and communities. We are also supporting the training of security forces, which is focused on ensuring that public security during the election period is maintained and that human rights are respected. We are following developments closely. We expect elections to be conducted transparently and that due process be followed before and during the polls.