Côte d’Ivoire
"These monuments symbolise the long journey of Duékoué's communities since 2011. They lift the weight of the horrors we endured and witnessed. Today, what we lived through is no longer hidden — it is known and acknowledged throughout Côte d'Ivoire. We are no longer alone in carrying the memory of the 2011 events. I feel lighter now"— A survivor of the 2011 events in Duékoué and a beneficiary of the TFV Assistance Programme.
Background
The TFV assistance programme in Côte d'Ivoire ran from February 2020 to 31 May 2025.
The programme addressed the physical, psychological and material harm suffered by victims of thirteen identified emblematic incidents that took place between 2002 and 2011, across four regions: Lagunes, Haut-Sassandra, Guémon and Cavally. It was designed and implemented with regard to the national reparations initiative led by Côte d'Ivoire's Ministries of National Cohesion, Solidarity and the Fight Against Poverty.
Given the nature of the crimes, the programme combined individual and collective measures. More than 800 victims received physical, psychological or material rehabilitation, and more than 10,000 individuals took part in community activities. In all, the programme benefited more than 130,000 victims.
Following a thorough review, the TFV, its partners and its advisory committee chose to open the programme with symbolic, community-based actions that acknowledged the harm suffered by victims. Community-based therapy was introduced to address the moral harm experienced by a large number of them.
A list of eligible victims was finalised for the individual delivery of services. This work began once partners had met with individuals to provide initial relief and to assess the harm as it persisted at the time. Holistic rehabilitation pathways were then designed with each victim, taking account of these enduring harms. Further victims joined the programme in 2024. In total, the individual rehabilitation component supported 835 victims.
Integrated community-based therapy was delivered in every locality targeted by the programme, with more than 1,400 individuals attending sessions regularly.
The TFV worked with a dozen artists to create memorials in line with the wishes of each affected community. In 2024, it completed and delivered six memorials — five of them built in collaboration with the national authorities — to address the collective moral harm borne by these communities. Some communities chose instead to mark their suffering through the renovation of public amenities: projects involving wells, water towers, classrooms and school canteens acknowledged the collective harm while helping to rebuild a shared sense of community.
These memorialisation efforts benefited more than 131,000 victims. A series of films and photographs was also produced about the programme, documenting the paths that communities and individuals took to come to terms with the thirteen incidents. This material has been shown on the anniversaries of the incidents as a reminder of the enduring nature of the harm, and it continues to be used in commemoration.
Strategic approach
An incident-based approach. The programme targeted the harm arising from thirteen incidents. These are well known to the Ivorian population and carry a strong symbolic dimension, whether because of the nature of the harm suffered or because of their community character. Beyond their emblematic status, the incidents were selected against a number of criteria:
- the typology and severity of the harm;
- a coherent and non-discriminatory distribution of victims across communities;
- documentation of the incidents by the National Commission of Enquiry, the Dialogue, Truth and Reconciliation Commission, or other recognised national or international bodies — allowing the harm to be qualified as falling within the scope of Rome Statute crimes and confirming victims' eligibility for assistance; and
- the location of the incidents in relation to the areas of operation of the TFV's implementing partners in Côte d'Ivoire.
The selection was made in consultation with civil society organisations and victims' associations, which together acted as an advisory committee to the TFV.
Holistic rehabilitation. Rehabilitation pathways were designed with each victim, taking account of the physical and other enduring harms suffered. This component supported 835 victims in total.
Community-based therapy. Introduced to address the moral harm experienced by many victims, integrated community-based therapy was delivered in every targeted locality, with more than 1,400 individuals attending regularly.
Taken together, the programme centred on three pillars:
- Individual rehabilitation,
- Community therapy, and
- Symbolic and memorialisation measures.
The ICC and Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire accepted the jurisdiction of the ICC in 2003 through an Article 12(3) declaration, and has been a State Party to the Rome Statute since 2013.
The ICC has jurisdiction over the situation in Côte d'Ivoire in respect of alleged crimes committed between 19 September 2002 and 28 November 2010, as well as any that may be committed in the future in the context of this situation. Since 2011, the Office of the Prosecutor has investigated alleged crimes against humanity committed during the 2010–2011 post-electoral violence, documenting large-scale acts that displaced approximately one million people. The attacks included widespread and systematic violence against the civilian population, the excessive use of force in densely populated areas to disperse protesters, mass arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and incidents of rape, as well as the existence of several mass graves. To date, the investigations have given rise to three cases, all of which had ended in acquittal or been vacated by 2021. The Office of the Prosecutor's investigation remains ongoing.
Alongside these investigations and judicial proceedings — and, in part, ahead of them — the Trust Fund for Victims launched a programme for individuals and communities affected by the most emblematic incidents of 2002 to 2011, in response to the harm they had suffered. Implemented across Abidjan and the western regions, the programme was delivered in partnership with the Government of Côte d'Ivoire and the organisations WANEP, AVSI and DRAO. It provided medical, psychological and socio-economic rehabilitation to more than 800 victims and carried out collective measures benefiting over 10,000 individuals. It also delivered eleven symbolic constructions — six memorials and five amenities built or renovated — whose design and symbolism reflect the voices and needs of victims and their communities.
Learn more about the TFV Programme:
Press releases
On 11 April 2025, the Trust Fund for Victims (TFV) at the International Criminal Court (ICC), together with the Government of Côte d’Ivoire held a commemorative ceremony in Abidjan to officially acknowledge the harm suffered by victims of the most serious and emblematic crimes against humanity committed between March and April 2011. Read full press release: English French
Also on video English French
On the occasion of the National Days of Peace, Forgiveness and Remembrance, with the theme "Remembering, forgiving each other to build the future together”, celebrated from 8 to 15 November 2022 in Côte d'Ivoire, the Trust Fund for Victims (TFV) at the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the Ministry of Reconciliation and National Cohesion organised two symbolic reparations ceremonies in the western town of Duékoué to recognise the harm inflicted on victims of the crimes committed there during the 2010-2011 post-electoral crisis. Read full press release: English
On the first day of its 16th Meeting, occurring from 16 to 18 May 2017, the Board of Directors of the Trust Fund for Victims (TFV) at the International Criminal Court (ICC) decided to launch a new assistance programme in Côte d'Ivoire to provide physical, psychological rehabilitation and material support for the benefit of victims of crimes under the ICC's jurisdiction. Read full press release: English French
Ceremonies
On 4 March 2024, the TFV, in collaboration with local partner civil society organisations in Côte d'Ivoire and the Government of Cote d’Ivoire held a ceremony to commemorate the victims of the women's march in Abobo, Abidjan English French
Testimonials
La thérapie communautaire pour les victimes 2023
Ana Brandao présente la thérapie communautaire 2023
Pauline Zaipo parle de la thérapie communautaire pour les victimes quartier Carrefour de Duékoué, 2023
Mariam Bakayoko parle de la thérapie communautaire pour les victimes quartier Kokoman de Duékoué, 2023
Le ministre Kouadio Konan Bertin à Duékoué pour des réparations symboliques collectives, 2023
Cérémonies de réparations symboliques à Duékoué, Côte d'Ivoire" 2022
On psychosocial rehabilitation and community therapy 2022
Last Update: June 2026
