Meet the Ambassador - Cote d’Ivoire
‘You feel the energy and the warmth here’
Jeroen Kelderhuis is the Dutch ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire, a country the Netherlands is keen to support in developing horticulture and sustainable fair trade. In his free time, he enjoys the vibe in the capital city of Abidjan. ‘There’s something to do every night, whether it’s music, dance or comedy.’
You took over as ambassador to Côte d’Ivoire in 2023. What was the first thing that struck you about the country, its people and its way of life? And how do you see things now?
I arrived in Abidjan on 14 August of last year. After working in The Hague, Belgrade, Tehran, Bujumbura, Tunis, Erbil, Ankara and Juba, it was the start of yet another new adventure. No matter how many years of experience you have, each posting feels like starting again from scratch – this really is a job for people with plenty of adaptability and flexibility. I love landing somewhere I’ve never been before and taking in all the new impressions and new people and different cultures and habits. At a mission like this, every day brings surprises and adventures.
What I noticed right away is that the climate and the people here are both so warm. Abidjan is a modern city – and while it might look like it needs a lick of paint, I know now that that’s because of the humid climate. There’s been a lot of investment in infrastructure like roads, viaducts and bridges. And there’s a middle class, which means there’s plenty of demand for places to eat out and entertainment venues, though at the same time you still see so much poverty. But the energy, optimism and enthusiasm of the Ivorian people is evident everywhere. They make sure you feel at home here by saying akwaba – ‘welcome!’ That same openness and hospitality was on show in Côte d’Ivoire recently during the Africa Cup. And there was such a celebration when they actually won, with so many positive messages coming in from the region and all around the world.
What’s your most important responsibility as ambassador?
Being visible and understanding what’s going on in this country. Making sure my team and I are abreast of issues in Côte d’Ivoire and that we know what it needs, and then finding Dutch knowledge and expertise that’s a good match. Lots of networking, rolling out initiatives, and opening doors for Dutch businesses and organisations. And communicating about all of that both here in Côte d’Ivoire and in the Netherlands.
What are the priority topics for the mission? Can you describe a couple of particularly interesting projects?
Our main focus is a blend of aid and trade, and our priority sectors are cacao and horticulture. Our target groups are young people and women. The Netherlands imports more cacao from Côte d’Ivoire than any other country does. And of course we have a lot of horticulture expertise, and so plenty to offer in that area. Through programmes run by RVO, CBI, FMO and Invest International, we’re able to roll out meaningful programmes that benefit both our countries.
What I like about all this is our commitment to more sustainable and fair trade and development in these sectors. For instance, a number of pilot projects have shown how Dutch knowledge and skills can help farmers achieve better harvests. And we’re about to open a factory that uses waste products from cacao fruit to make drinks.
But because trade and investment work best in a safe environment, the Netherlands also contributes to fighting terrorism, for example through concrete projects like a training centre for security services. During her visit here in January, the Minister of Defence, Kajsa Ollongren, announced that the Netherlands would extend its contribution in the coming years to enable military personnel from various African countries to train together. Along with Côte d’Ivoire’s defence minister, she signed a declaration of intention for more cooperation on security. After that, my US counterpart and I both signed a contract aimed at improving relations between the military and civil society in the north of the country. In short, our work in Côte d’Ivoire is a combination of aid, trade and work on security.
How do you relax after a day at work?
It’s easy to make friends in Abidjan, so I spend a lot of time trekking around with people from outside my diplomatic circle – for instance, at the pretty beaches up and down the coast. Abidjan also has plenty of cultural activities on offer. There’s something to do every night, whether it’s music, dance, theatre or a comedy club. And it has a booming arts scene, so I like to visit the many galleries in the city. You meet an entirely different group of people there than you do at more formal receptions.
I recently had the honour of opening a dance academy in one of the poorer suburbs. It was great to see how people were able to get something so revolutionary off the ground with so few resources at their disposal. The dancers had earned enough money during a successful tour of the Netherlands to come back and build the school – I find that incredibly energising.
This is a job that demands the stamina of an athlete. I’ve never really been much into sports, but I’ve hired a coach to help me with fitness training three times a week, and that was the best decision I ever made. Now the same coach trains the entire embassy staff every Friday afternoon – that’s a relaxed way to finish the week.
What do you hope to achieve in the coming years?
I hope that my team and I can manage to raise the Netherlands’ profile in Côte d’Ivoire, and make us a preferred partner for the Ivorians. We’ll be travelling a lot in the coming years, and we came up with an idea for a promotional tour: ‘the Netherlands in Côte d’Ivoire Caravan’. We’ve already had lots of enthusiastic responses from Dutch businesses and organisations that are eager to join us and promote their products and services outside Abidjan. I’m really excited about it, because of course there’s so much more to Côte d’Ivoire than Abidjan alone.
What has the embassy done or achieved in recent years that makes you feel proud?
With only its small team, the embassy managed to shine a spotlight on the Netherlands at a big agricultural convention last year. The Netherlands was the guest of honour, and what that meant in real terms was plenty of new contacts and leads for Dutch businesses and organisations. My colleagues gave their all during those two weeks, but they look back on everything with a lot of satisfaction and pride. The award we won for ‘best stand’ has pride of place in our office.
Besides all this, there are plenty of other interesting activities to read about! So follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook .