The Investment and Development Bank of ECOWAS (BIDC) inaugurated its first office in Abidjan on 1 December 2025 in Abidjan regional, in Abidjan. A strategic step that aims to bring the institution closer of its member states, accelerate the implementation of projects and strengthen its role in West African integration.

The inauguration ceremony makes a project a reality launched in May 2025 when an establishment agreement was signed between Ivory Coast and the management of the BIDC. This antenna will not only cover Côte d'Ivoire, but also five other countries on the western side of ECOWAS: Liberia, Sierra Leone, Gambia, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Senegal. For the institution based in Lomé, this establishment marks a turning point in its proximity strategy, by allowing it to be more present in the field, more responsive and better aligned with national and regional priorities.

The inauguration of the Abidjan office coincides with the preparation by Côte d'Ivoire of its National Development Plan 2026-2030, which must rely more on financial institutions regional to support national priorities. Nialé Kaba considers that the arrival of the BIDC in Abidjan will constitute “a strategic lever” for better to link national funding and regional contributions, and to strengthen the role of Côte d'Ivoire as an economic hub within the West African community.

The President of the Council of Governors of the BIDC and Ghanaian Minister of Finance, Cassiel Ato Forson, integrates this openness into an institutional dynamic of growth.