Ivory Coast inaugurated a new archaeological museum wing on Monday after rare Stone Age relics emerged during dam construction in Ahouati.
The discovery of Paleolithic and Neolithic artefacts in the southern region prompted authorities to expand the country’s first archaeological museum in Abidjan.
Culture Minister Francoise Remarck hailed the moment, calling it proof that “an environmental constraint has become a historic opportunity.”
Located between Abidjan and Yamoussoukro, the new Ahouati annexe showcases metallurgical tools and ancient bones once stored in scattered university labs.
Health Minister Pierre Dimba declared the opening a milestone toward making Ivory Coast a leader in archaeological research and preservation in Africa.
The exhibition offers a glimpse into early human life in tropical forests, challenging previous theories of human migration and settlement.
New findings suggest humans lived in the dense forest near Anyama, north of Abidjan, as early as 150,000 years ago.
This revelation significantly predates earlier estimates that placed such habitation at only 70,000 years ago.
The research, led by an international team and published recently, repositions Ivory Coast in the broader map of human origins.
Retired archaeologist François Guede Yiode, a pioneer in Ivorian prehistory, co-authored the study and is lauded as the nation’s only expert in the field.
“At last we have an appropriate place to display these finds,” said doctoral archaeology student Désiré Dangi Kouamé Kra at the inauguration.
The annexe is expected to not only protect national heritage but also inspire a new generation of Ivorian researchers and archaeologists.