Our final full day in Abidjan before departing. We will spend the day shopping in local markets and meeting with tailors by appointment. The tailors will create beautiful apparel for you with any fabrics you may have purchased on the trip. A group lunch and dinner will be provided.
We depart Grand Bassam today and drive back to Abidjan.
Later, we will reconvene for a group dinner for reflection and a fun awards ceremony!
After enjoying a group breakfast each day, enjoy Grand Bassam at your leisure.
On to historic Grand Bassam! This town, built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, was the first capital of Côte d’Ivoire, and due to its location next to the Atlantic coastline, was considered the most important port and economic center at that time.
Areas of interest include the N'zima fishing village, Kodjo’s gallery, local architecture, the Victory Bridge, shopping, time on the beach and more! Meals include a group lunch and dinner today.
We say goodbye to Bouaké today and travel back to Abidjan. On the way back we will tour a local village, enjoy tribal music and dance, and have the opportunity to purchase local weaved fabrics.
Throughout these two days, we will be hosting a Koné Consulting Lean workshop at a nonprofit, government agency, or community organization in Bouaké.
Lean is a set of principles based on the core idea that organizations can maximize customer value while minimizing waste and maintaining respect for people. These principles came from manufacturing (specifically, Toyota and other automakers) but in recent years they have been used by service-sector organizations seeking to improve service for their consumers.
Lean thinking involves changing the role of management from optimizing “siloed” departments into optimizing the flow of information or products through whole value streams that can cross departments or functions in an organization.
A value stream is a sequence of work or events that an organization does to fulfill acustomer’s request by delivering something of value to them. A value stream includes all of the processes that take place in the delivery of service or product to a customer or constituent. A single value stream can be depicted as a value stream map, which is a large-format visual that shows flows of work materials and information needed to create or do whatever is needed to fulfill the customer’s initial request.
Value stream improvement (VSI) is a method we have used for purposes such as business process reengineering, program assessments and organizational planning engagements. In VSI, we work with managers to select areas for improvement that add value for customers, and then coach "doers" through a pilot period of making experimental improvements to positively impact the organization's service delivery.
On both days, lunch will be provided during the workshop. Dinner on your own.
After breakfast, we will embark to a new city, Bouaké, the second largest city in Côte d’Ivoire.
On the way we will stop in Yamoussoukro, the capital of the country to tour the capitol building and the largest basilica in the world, Notre-Dame de la Paix. After lunch we will continue on to Bouaké and check into Hôtel mon Afrik.
A group dinner will take place at the hotel restaurant.
An active day is in store for us as we tour the Abidjan zoo and visit a chocolate factory. The Abidjan zoo continues to go through a revitalization after being closed during the country’s civil war. New wildlife has been introduced, including lions, zebras, giraffes, primates and reptiles. After exploring the zoo and enjoying a group lunch, we will then embark on a tour of a chocolate factory. (The Ivory Coast is one of the world leaders in production and export of cocoa beans.) After returning from our day’s activities, we will reconvene for a group dinner.
Day four finds us traveling to Parque de Banco, a popular recreational area north of Abidjan. Parque de Banco features national trees, flowers, and shrubs that can be found throughout Côte d’Ivoire. Animals including monkeys, civets and genets roam the park. We will also enjoy a scenic picnic lunch and later in the afternoon head back to the hotel. Dinner will be on your own. An optional excursion to a local soccer game will be offered during the evening.
The “voluntour” aspect of the tour starts today! Our voluntour group will be working on a community project that will benefit the community long after our tour ends. Details of the project are still being worked on but will be communicated shortly. After our project, we will have a lunch with members of the community to celebrate our teamwork.
Later in the afternoon, we will head back to the hotel and you will be able to relax and enjoy dinner on your own.
We will kick-off the first official day of the tour with a delectable, French-influenced group breakfast, informative orientation session, and Q&A about the country and our itinerary.
After breakfast we will visit the Musée des Civilisations de Côte d'Ivoire, where we will learn more about the fascinating history and resilient culture of Côte d’Ivoire.
Lunch will take place at the Museum. After departing the Musée, we will visit the local fabric vendors where you will have a chance to peruse and purchase beautiful Côte d’Ivoirian fabrics.
After we get back to our hotel, we will meet for a group dinner to enjoy the flavors of the local cuisine.