Know It All: Ivory Coast! Trivia Quiz

Answer: North Atlantic Ocean

Cote d'Ivoire meets the North Atlantic Ocean at its southern border. The Gulf of Guinea is the name for the specific area that runs south and east from Cape Palmas in Liberia to Cape Lopez in Gabon.

Answer: Piracy

The Gulf of Guinea was called "The New Danger" zone by the "International Crisis Group". Incidents of piracy have increased in recent years. The attacks occur closer to shore in territorial waters as opposed to international waters. Providing protection is difficult in these waters due to the inadequate equipment, training and resources of the coast guards and local authorities. Targeted vessels are oil and gas tankers, although other trade shipments are not excluded from attacks.

The attacks make not only an impact on the west African economies, they impact the world economies.

Answer: August 7

The Ivory Coast's French evolution began in the 1800s. The Ivory Coast was established as a French colony then became a French Republic after World War II. On August 7, 1960, the Ivory Coast became an independent nation. August 7 is a national holiday celebrated with parties, parades and processions.

Answer: Félix Houphouët-Boigny

Félix Houphouët-Boigny was the first President of Cote d'Ivoire. Three years prior to his death, UNESCO established the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize. It is an annual prize that includes a peace diploma, a gold medal and $150,000. One notable recipient was Nelson Mandela. He shared the prize with F. W. de Klerk in 1991.

Answer: Bandama

The Bandama River is the longest river in Cote d'Ivoire and flows through the country's largest lake, Lake Kossou. Lake Kossou was created by damming the Bandama River. The Kossou Dam is one of the country's sites for hydroelectric power. Buyo and Taabo Dams are the other sites.

Answer: National Parks/Reserves

Although there are other properties on the tenative list, Taï National Park, Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve, Comoé National Park, and the Historic Town of Grand-Bassam are the four properties that are on the World Heritage List in 2013. The three parks alone are home to thousands of different species of both flora and fauna, many of which are endangered or at risk.

Answer: From trees under the canopy of shade trees in rainforest regions

Cocoa trees thrive under the canopy of the rainforest. They need good, rich soil, the humidity of the tropics, and shade of the trees that make up the rainforest to grow. The trees produce 20-30 pods per year. Each cocoa pod can contain 20-60 seeds or beans. It takes an entire tree's annual crop to equal 450 grams, or almost one pound, of chocolate!

Answer: New Mexico

Ivory Coast is 124,502 square miles. The country is divided into regions and further divided into departments. There are nineteen regions and eighty-one departments that make up the Ivory Coast.

Of the states in the U.S., New Mexico is the closest in size at 121,589 square miles and is the fifth largest state in land area. Alaska is the largest U.S. state at 663,267 square miles. Wyoming is the tenth largest at 97,813 square miles. Delaware is the 49th largest, or next to the smallest, state in total land area at 2,489 square miles. Rhode Island is the smallest U.S. state in land area. (All totals are approximate within 5 square miles.)

Answer: Southeast

Abidjan is on the coast of Cote d'Ivoire in the southeast. In 1960 it became the capital of the newly independent Republic of Cote d'Ivoire. In 1983 the political capital was moved to Yamoussoukro. Abidjan is an important port for the Ivory Coast and has a population over 3.5 million!

Answer: Liberia & Guinea

The Mount Nimba Strict Nature Preserve lies on the western border of the Ivory Coast. It also lies within the countries of Liberia and Guinea. Liberia is a coastal country that is on the southwestern side of the Ivory Coast. Guinea is directly north of Liberia sharing the west-northwestern border with the Ivory Coast.