On December 4, 1958, Côte d'Ivoire became a member state within the French Community. On August 7, 1960, Côte d'Ivoire achieved its full independence fron France, and Félix Houphouët-Boigny became the first president after the independence.
The policies of Félix Houphouët-Boigny, compared with the post-colonial leaders of other African countries, were more pro-Western. Houphouët-Boigny maintained a closed political allegiance to the West while many other leaders turned to the communist camp. After independence, Houphouët-Boigny maintained a close relation with France. Côte d'Ivoire had a growing French expatriate community, and many of the French expatriates provided Côte d'Ivoire technical assistance. Besides in economic issues, cooperation with France was also established in military issues. Houphouët-Boigny considered the permanent presence of French force as a protection which guaranteed the security of the country.[1]
Houphouët-Boigny maintained a one-party regime. However, he often employed softer and less direct tactics to maintain his power and dictatorship. He would win over his political opponents by bringing them into the ruling party, giving compromises, offering cooperation, etc. However, every political party was banned except his own party, Parti Democratique de Côte d’Ivoire (PDCI). Fėlix Houphouët-Boigny had won every presidential elections since the independence to his death in 1993.
Under his government, Côte d'Ivoire took the course of liberal free market economy and expanded its cash crop sector. It became one of the largest producers of coffee and cocoa in the world. In 1955, Caisse de Stabilisation et de Soutien des Prix Agricoles (CAISTAB) was founded to control the prices of coffee and cocoa. By the early 1980s Côte d'Ivoire had one of the highest per capita incomes among those Sub-Saharan states without petroleum. This was termed the "Ivorian miracle".
However, in the 1980s, the prices of coffee and cocoa plunged. Equipped with a price stability fund, the government pledged to pay the price difference if farmers did not get enough prices at market for their products. However, the prices continued to drop, the fund quickly dried, subsidies to farmers had to be cut, and the external debt of Côte d'Ivoire rose. As revenues fell, the government was forced to adjust its expense. The government funding was cut in many areas, particularly in education. Protests led by civil servants and students forced the government to hold elections and adopt a multi-party system in 1990.
The two major political parties in the 1990 election were the Front Populaire Ivoirien (FPI), founded by Laurent Gbagbo, and the ruling PDCI. Houphouët-Boigny won the first multi-party presidential election in 1990, with more than 80 percent of the vote. However, he died soon afterwards in 1993.
Henri Konan Bédié succeeded Houphouët-Boigny as the president. The economic situation was still unstable. Bédié was accused of corruption, political repression. He adopted nationalist and xenophobic policies such as "Ivoirité", which disfavored many people with immigrant background. The tension within Côte d'Ivoire kept growing. On December 23, 1999, a group of soldiers rebelled. Bédié was overthrown in the coup d'état of the following day.
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