India–Ivory Coast relations SODEMI (Ivorian state-owned company for mineral development) have entered into a joint venture agreement (JVA) for the development of Mount Nimba Iron ore deposits in Ivory Coast (West Africa). The Mt Nimba deposit, spread over 3 countries - Liberia, Guinea and Ivory Coast, is one of the biggest in the Africa. With Ivory Coast still maintaining its status as the economic powerhouse of French West Africa, India is looking to open new factories in the country. Ivory Coast's Minister of Mines, Energy and Petroleum, Monnet Leon, has also urged India to make use of Ivory Coast's vast mineral resources, including
West Africa Coast Initiative assistance as the best safeguard against narcotics-trafficking and the creation of drug-dependent economies. Oil theft, or “bunkering”, in the Niger Delta is a key driver of pollution, as well as political instability, and the West Africa Coast Initiative will provide technical assistance to address it. In Nigeria, 55 million barrels of oil a year (a tenth of their entire production) are lost through theft and smuggling. Oil bunkering is a source of pollution, corruption, and revenue for insurgents and criminal groups, particularly in the Niger Delta. The West Africa Coast Initiative is a collaboration of the According to the UNODC,