The PDCI-RDA, the main opposition party in Ivory Coast, reacted strongly to the abolition of the 12 autonomous districts, denouncing a "massive waste of public resources" only five years after their establishment.

Meeting in its 39th session, the party's executive secretariat stated that this decision, made at the end of January 2026, "confirms the criticisms leveled from the outset" against a reform deemed "costly and irrelevant." Created in June 2021, these districts have reportedly cost Ivorian taxpayers over 68 billion CFA francs, according to the party led by Tidjane Thiam.

The PDCI-RDA also deplores the ineffective mobilization of human resources. More than 450 staff members, including at least 300 civil servants, have reportedly been assigned to these structures, which the party describes as "inoperative." This situation, it argues, has contributed to weakening essential sectors such as health, education, agriculture, and infrastructure.

In its statement, the party concludes that there has been a "massive waste of public resources" and demands accountability and immediate corrective measures. It believes these funds could have been redirected towards social priorities, including the construction of approximately 7,000 classrooms or 1,310 rural health centers, or the financing of income-generating activities for youth and women.

The executive secretariat also regrets that the government waited five years before "implicitly recognizing the uselessness" of these structures, whose powers were deemed redundant with those of regional prefects and decentralized administrations.

Furthermore, the PDCI-RDA expressed its "deep indignation" at the persistent difficulties in the electricity sector. It denounced recurring power outages, rising tariffs, and a lack of transparency in billing, all within a context of a high cost of living.

The party also criticizes an energy model it considers favorable to a private operator, arguing that it "guarantees profits while transferring risks to the population." This situation, it claims, leads consumers to pay more for a declining quality of service.

In response to this, the PDCI-RDA calls for total transparency on tariffs, an independent audit of the sector, immediate relief measures for households, and a structural reform of the Ivorian electricity system.