AFRICA/IVORY COAST – Bishops launch creation of Catholic University of Ivory Coast

Abidjan – The creation of the Catholic University of Ivory Coast and a spiritual retreat center for priests are the two main topics at the heart of the 128th Plenary Assembly of the Episcopal Conference of Ivory Coast, being held from January 20 to 25 in San Pedro.
The Assembly opened on January 20 in the presence of the Apostolic Nuncio to Ivory Coast, Msgr. Mauricio Rueda Beltz, and Cardinal Ignace Bessi Dogbo, Metropolitan Archbishop of Abidjan, with a Mass presided over by Msgr. Marcellin Yao Kouadio of Daloa, President of the CECCI .
In his homily, Kouadio expressed his deep concern about the state of democracy in several African states, referring to “independence under tutelage and confiscated sovereignty.” The bishop further emphasized that “there is an attempt to imitate Western democratic models in a context marked by violence, economic exploitation, and interference,” recalling the numerous cases in which “access to power is achieved through illegality, electoral fraud, or poaching.” “Fraudulent winners are congratulated and celebrated at the expense of the ballot box’s verdict,” he lamented, launching an urgent appeal to those in power to be “a blessing for the people they claim to represent.” One of the topics analyzed by the bishops is precisely the socio-political situation of the country, also in light of the presidential and legislative elections held in 2025.
On the ecclesial level, the CECCI discussed the creation of the Catholic University of Côte d’Ivoire , a project presented during the 126th Plenary Assembly in January 2025. The University will be established under the direction of the Catholic Academy of Côte d’Ivoire .

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