Summary of Facts
6. On 16th January, 2009, the National Co-ordinating Group of Departmental Representatives of the
Cocoa-Coffee Sector, a non- profit Association with headquarters at Abidjan, in Côte d'Ivoire, filed an
Application before the Community Court of Justice, ECOWAS in which it asserted that Côte d'Ivoire is the
highest producer of cocoa in the world, and that it occupies an important position in terms of coffee
production.
7. The Applicant argued that whereas Côte d'Ivoire significant portion of its revenue from these two raw
cocoa and coffee producers constitute one of the most disadvantaged groups in the Ivorian society. This
situation allegedly arose from excessive taxation which considerably eroded the purchasing power of the
coffee and cocoa producers in Côte d'Ivoire.
8. The Applicant stated that according to a report by the Director of Operations of the World Bank for Côte
d'Ivoire, due to the multiple levies imposed on them, notably those imposed through the instrumentality of
the DUS (Single Exit Right) system, cocoa and coffee producers in Côte d'Ivoire hardly receive 40% of the
fixed price on the international market, whereas their counterparts in Ghana receive 70%, and those in
Nigeria, 90%.
9. The Applicant pointed out that this situation seriously violated the rights of the producers in two ways:
firstly, it violated their right to fair remuneration, and secondly, it violated the principle of equality of all
citizens before the law.
10. In support of its action, the Applicant cited Article 23(3)
× Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family
an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.
of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which provides that "Everyone who works has the right to
just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity,
and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection".
11. The Applicant prayed the Court to:
- Adjudge and declare that its Application as filed was well-founded;
- Immediately issue an order of injunction requiring the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire to adopt all necessary and
appropriate measures to ensure that the violations in question had ceased;
- Order the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire to pay the symbolic sum of Two Hundred Million CFA Francs (CFA
F200,000,000) of damages as reparation for the harm caused the cocoa and coffee producers represented
by the National Co-ordinating Group of Departmental Representatives of the Cocoa-Coffee Sector (CNDD).
12. The Defendant maintained, on its part, that the Applicant has neither the capacity nor status to come
before the Court; that even if it had the capacity and status to do so, the Court will have no jurisdiction to
adjudicate on the case; that the filing of the case before the Court violated the provisions of public order
and the Ivorian law; and finally, that the allegations of the Applicant are unfounded, and it therefore asked
the Court not to grant the requests made by the CNDD.
The Court's Analysis of the Pleas in Objection
As to the objection regarding defect in the legal status of the Applicant
13. The Defendant maintained in its Memorial in Defence that the Applicant limited itself to indicating that "it
is a non-profit making association governed by Ivorian Law No. 60-315 of 21 September 1960" without
justifying it by adducing all necessary legal documents which prove its actual standing as conferred on it by
law, in terms of its legal status; that failing the fulfilment of such requirement, the Applicant's request must
be declared inadmissible before the Court.
14. On this point, the Court is of the view that the production of evidence on the status of the Association
and on Law No. 60-315 of 21 September 1960 could have been a considerable asset to it for the purposes
of assessing the legal status of the said association.
15. However, the Court holds that in the initiating application, it is indicated that, "The National
Co-ordinating Group of Departmental Representatives of the Cocoa-Coffee Sector (CNDD), is a
non-profit making Association governed by Ivorian Law No. 60-315 of 21 September 1960, with its
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