Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara told his ministers on Tuesday to sign a code of ethics aimed at stamping out corruption and nepotism that he said makes his country one of the worst in the world to do business with. Since ousting former President Laurent Gbagbo from office in April, after a bloody power struggle between them over a disputed November election, Ouattara has promised to clean up government and get the once prosperous West African nation's finances and public services back on track.
Corruption flourished under Gbagbo, especially after a 2002 rebellion against him split the country in two. Several peace deals created a government of national unity that gave various actors in its conflict access to state coffers. Many Ivorians and international donors are hoping Ouattara, a former IMF deputy director, can flush out the sloth, inefficiency and graft they say have become the norm in public institutions over the past decade.
"For too long our country has suffered from illicit practices that have seriously damaged the credibility of our government," Ouattara said. "Corruption, the race for illicit enrichment, abuse of public goods, nepotism, cronyism and embezzlement of all sorts have been the practised."