---
title: "Flag of Ivory Coast: colours and meaning"
description: "What every colour and symbol on the Ivory Coast flag stands for, its official 2:3 ratio, and the year the current design was adopted."
url: https://atoneplace.net/flag/ivory-coast/
site: "At One Place"
---

# The flag of Ivory Coast

**The flag of Ivory Coast: Three equal vertical bands of orange at the hoist, white, and green.**

Ratio 2:3 · current design adopted 1959

*[Flag drawn on the page: Ivory Coast]*

It is Ireland's flag mirrored, and the two are confused often enough that both governments have had to correct hosts at international events. The Ivorian design is deliberately geographic — orange for the northern savannah, green for the southern forest and white for the peace between them — which is a different logic from Ireland's sectarian reading of the same two colours. Adopted in 1959, a year before independence from France, it follows the French tricolour's vertical format. Its 2:3 ratio is squarer than Ireland's 1:2, which is the reliable tell when only one flag is present.

## Flags it gets confused with

*[Flag drawn on the page: Ivory Coast, Ireland]*

*Drawn at each flag’s own official ratio, which is itself the difference in some of these pairs.*

| Flag | How to tell them apart |
| --- | --- |
| Ireland | Ireland is the mirror image — green at the hoist, orange at the fly — and longer, at 1:2. |
| Niger | Niger's bands are horizontal and it has an orange disc in the centre. |

## What the colours mean

*Flag laws usually specify a Pantone chip, a CMYK mix or just a colour name. Converting any of those to sRGB is lossy, which is why published hex values disagree.*

- **Orange** (#F77F00) — The savannah of the north, and national growth
- **White** (#FFFFFF) — Peace
- **Green** (#009E60) — The forests of the south, and hope

- **Ratio:** 2:3
- **Current design adopted:** 1959
- **Colours:** orange, white, green

## Common questions

### What does the flag of Ivory Coast look like?

Three equal vertical bands of orange at the hoist, white, and green.

### What do the colours of the Ivory Coast flag mean?

Orange: the savannah of the north, and national growth. White: peace. Green: the forests of the south, and hope.

### How do you tell the Ivory Coast flag from the Ireland one?

Ireland is the mirror image — green at the hoist, orange at the fly — and longer, at 1:2.

### When was the Ivory Coast flag adopted?

The current design dates from 1959, and its official ratio is 2:3.

## Related pages

- [Ivory Coast](https://atoneplace.net/country/ivory-coast/)
- [The flag of Ireland](https://atoneplace.net/flag/ireland/)
- [Every flag with orange in it](https://atoneplace.net/flag/colour/orange/)
- [The flag of Sri Lanka](https://atoneplace.net/flag/sri-lanka/)
- [The flag of Bhutan](https://atoneplace.net/flag/bhutan/)
- [The flag of Marshall Islands](https://atoneplace.net/flag/marshall-islands/)

## Sources

- The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency (https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/) [Public domain (US Government)]