Former Credit Suisse boss Tidjane Thiam is to run for president in Ivory Coast’s forthcoming election, his party has confirmed.
Thiam, 62, was the only candidate vying to represent the country’s main opposition party, the PDCI.
Thiam has spent the last two decades living abroad, and had to give up his French citizenship to be able to stand in the presidential election.
The former minister has held senior positions in leading international businesses like Aviva, Prudential and Credit Suisse, though he resigned from the latter following a spying scandal.
Political scientist Geoffroy Kouao told the AFP news agency that Thiam was not “well known to Ivorians,” after spending more than 20 years out of the country pursuing his business career, and so would have to run a strong campaign in order to win October’s election.
The governing RHDP party has not yet announced its candidate, but the current president, 83-year-old Alassane Ouattara, is likely to run for what would be a fourth term in office.
Three other prominent figures, including former President Laurent Gbagbo, have been barred from running.
