What challenges did Alassane Ouattara face after taking office in 2011?

After officially taking office in May 2011, Alassane Ouattara faced the significant challenge of stabilizing a nation deeply scarred by the 2010 post-election crisis and years of division. His primary tasks included:12

• Economic Recovery: Ouattara focused on restoring the economy, a process supported by the lifting of a ban on cocoa exports and the removal of international sanctions.32
• Reconciliation and Justice: He sought to foster national unity between supporters of his predecessor, Laurent Gbagbo, and his own base. This included establishing a truth-and-reconciliation commission to investigate human rights abuses and requesting that the International Criminal Court investigate the violence that occurred during the election crisis.23
• Restoring Order: Beyond the immediate political standoff, Ouattara had to address sporadic violence and work to reunify a country that had remained divided since the 2002–03 civil war.32

While he was credited with fostering an impressive economic recovery, he later faced criticism from some who felt that this progress had not sufficiently reduced poverty or that his efforts toward achieving full justice and reconciliation were insufficient.2