Bouake - City of Ivory Coast

Bouaké is the second largest city in Côte d'Ivoire and also the department of which the city is the center. Bouaké Department and Bouaké City lie in Vallée du Bandama Region.

Its economy is based on the cotton industry. It is a centre for Baoulé people and is known for crafts. The city largely grew from the 1970s after the construction of the Kossou Dam flooded land to the west. Bouaké is known for its large carnival and market and for St Michael's Cathedral.

Bouaké was established as a French military post in 1899 and has been an administrative center since 1914.

French and United Nations peacekeepers currently reside in the city as part of an enforced ceasefire between the rebel-held north and the government-held south. After the attempt to overthrow the president Laurent Gbagbo had failed, the rebel forces FN led by Guillaume Soro made Bouaké their center of control. Subsequently, Bouaké University, opened in 1996, was closed down in September 2002. Financed by Unesco, the university reopened in April, 2005.

On November 4, 2004, governmental forces used Sukhoi-25's to raid the city as an opening movement towards "territorial liberation," according to Captain Jean-Noël Abbey of the Côte D'Ivoire army. Korhogo, 225 km north of Bouaké, was also targeted.

Higher education
Publique

University of Bouaké
Primary Schools
Public

Ecole primaire Publique Zone1
Secondary Schools

Lycée classique
Lycée technique
lycée Djibo Sounkalo
Lycée moderne Belleville
Lycée Saint-Viateur
Lycée René Descartes
Public Colleges

College de jeunes filles
Collège Moderne TSF
College moderne de Nimbo
College G. Koko
Private Colleges

Collège Marie Thérèse Yamousso
Collège Martin Luther King
Collège Moderne Saint Jacques
Collège Victor Hugo
Collège Ruth Fidèle
Collège Ouezzin Coulibaly
Collège Renaissance
Collège Moderne N'Takpe
Collège Saint-Viateur
Collège international chrétien
Collège Adventiste