Ivory Coast

The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), located on the Atlantic coast of Africa between Liberia and Ghana, received its independence in 1960, after [Page 606]almost 70 years of French colonial occupation. In 2010, it had an estimated population of about 20 million, but its recent official figures, including those of religious denominations of the Ivorian population, date back to the census of 1998. Censuses are sensitive in Côte d'Ivoire as two decades of political strife and popular antagonism revolve around issues of citizenship sometimes articulated in terms of religious opposition between Christians and Muslims.

With almost 40% of the population identifying itself as Muslim, Islam is the largest religious group in Côte d'Ivoire, followed by Christians (30%), non-religious people (17%), and “animists” (12%)—that is, practitioners ...