Côte d’Ivoire: The Lucrative Business of Funerals

Funerals in Côte d’Ivoire can involve major expenses, as some communities hold large ceremonies with feasts and festivities. Valérie Bli Lou, a trader from a modest family, spent about 2.5 million CFA francs on her father’s funeral, including 1.4 million for three cows. As a member of the Gouro community, she sees laying her father to rest with dignity as connected to receiving a family blessing. The amount is more than fifteen times Côte d’Ivoire’s average monthly salary and excludes costs such as transporting the coffin, organizing the ceremony, and feeding hundreds of guests.