Standards of medical care may differ from those in Canada. Treatment may be expensive, and payment in advance may be required. Travellers are advised to arrange for medical insurance prior to departure. Prescription medications should be kept in the original container and packed in carry-on luggage.

The Public Health Agency of Canada also recommends that travellers who become sick or feel unwell on their return to Canada seek a medical assessment with their personal physician. Travellers should inform their physician that they have been travelling or living outside of Canada.

BACK TO TOP

12. ADDITIONAL HEALTH INFORMATION

Travellers should drink only bottled water or drinks. Do not use ice cubes. Care should be taken in the preparation of food and visitors should avoid small stalls preparing local foods (maquis) unless they are familiar with the establishments.

BACK TO TOP

13. RETURNING TO CANADA

Please consult the Current Issue on returning to Canada.

BACK TO TOP

14. INTERNATIONAL ADOPTIONS

Provincial and territorial authorities in Canada are responsible for authorizing international adoptions. If you are thinking of adopting a child from another country, you must first obtain information about the adoption regulations of the province or territory in which the child will reside. While adoption is a provincial/territorial responsibility, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) is responsible for allowing an adopted child entry into Canada. Entry can be refused if the child does not hold the appropriate immigrant visa. A visa may be denied, even if the adoption has already been completed. For more information contact CIC at 1 888 242-2100 (in Canada only), check the CIC Web site or contact your provincial or territorial government.

BACK TO TOP

15. TRAVEL TIPS

Please consult our Traveller's Checklist.

BACK TO TOP

16. HEALTH AND TRAVEL INSURANCE

Do not rely on your provincial health plan to cover all expenses if you get sick or are injured while abroad. It may cover nothing or only a portion of the costs. Understand the terms of your supplementary insurance policy. Some credit cards offer their holders health and travel insurance. Do not assume the card alone provides adequate coverage. Carry details of your insurance with you. Also, tell your travel agent, a friend or relative, and/or travelling companion how to contact your insurer. Get a detailed invoice from the doctor or hospital before you return to Canada. Always submit original receipts for any medical services or prescriptions received abroad. Most insurance companies will not accept copies or faxes.

Cancelling a scheduled trip abroad could cost you money. Before cancelling a scheduled trip, you should discuss the matter with your travel agent, your travel insurer, or the airline. The decision to travel is the sole responsibility of the traveller.

BACK TO TOP

17. FOR MORE INFORMATION

TIPS FOR BUSINESS TRAVELLERS TO CÔTE D'IVOIRE

Recognizing a Business Scam

The Canadian Embassy (located at Immeuble Trade Centre, 23 avenue Nogues, Le Plateau, Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire), along with many other embassies, frequently handles "scam" cases. Business people, many of them experienced in overseas transactions, have lost thousands of dollars to these scams. Occasionally, persons who have gone to Côte d'Ivoire to "finalize" such deals have been threatened or assaulted. Local police and other officials have not provided assistance to those caught up in scams.

Caution should be exercised when contemplating any business transaction involving Côte d'Ivoire. The scams range from attempts to engage business people in fictitious money-transfer schemes to fraudulent solicitations to supply goods in fulfilment of non-existent Côte d'Ivoire government contracts. The scams are very sophisticated and may take victims to staged meetings, often held in borrowed offices at Côte d'Ivoire government ministries or at overseas locations. The persons involved do their research and can often provide plausible, but non-existent, orders written on seemingly genuine government stationery, complete with official stamps and seals.

Côte d'Ivoire business scams are not always easy to recognize, and any unsolicited business proposal should be carefully scrutinized and checked with the Commercial section of the Canadian Embassy. There are, nevertheless, some indicators that are warnings of a probable scam. Look out for:

Any offer of a substantial percentage of a large sum of money to be transferred into your account in return for your "discretion" or "confidentiality";

Any deal that seems too good to be true;

Requests for signed and stamped blank letterhead or invoices, or for bank account information;

Requests for urgent air shipment, accompanied by an instrument of payment whose genuineness cannot immediately be established;

Solicitation letters claiming that the soliciting party has personal ties to senior Côte d'Ivoire officials;

Requests for advance payment in U.S. dollars, in advance of transfer taxes or incorporation fees;

Statements that your name was provided to the soliciting party either by someone you do not know or by a "reliable contact";

Promises of advance payment for services to be provided to the Côte d'Ivoire government;

Claims that a Côte d'Ivoire visa is not necessary or that arrival in Côte d'Ivoire should be overland from a neighbouring country;

Resistance by Côte d'Ivoire partners to your checking in with the Canadian Embassy in Abidjan;

Any offer to supply oil; and

Any offer of a charitable donation.

These indicators are some of the most common hallmarks of Côte d'Ivoire scam operations. The list is not all-inclusive as scam operators are constantly weaving new elements into their schemes. The best rule to follow is that any unsolicited business proposal originating from Côte d'Ivoire or involving Côte d'Ivoire be carefully checked before any funds are committed, before any goods or services are provided, or before any travel is undertaken.

How Do the Scams Work?

Côte d'Ivoire business scams are confidence schemes, designed to exploit the trust you develop in your Ivoirian partner and defraud you of goods, services, or money. The scams are flexible, and operators adapt them to take the greatest advantage of the target.

Solicitation letters received in Canada may sometimes originate in countries neighbouring Côte d'Ivoire (i.e. Benin or Nigeria), in Europe, or in North America; however, you may be requested to visit Côte d'Ivoire to finalize the deal.

Here is a brief description of some of the most common schemes:

Money Transfer: The operator claims to have a large sum of money, usually millions of dollars, that needs to be transferred to a "safe" bank account abroad. The Central Bank of Nigeria is often, though by no means always, mentioned. You, as the bank account owner, are promised a percentage of the huge sum, just for allowing the use of your account. You may be asked to provide blank, signed invoices, letterhead, and bank account information, or to send money for transfer taxes. Some businesses have found their accounts looted by the persons to whom they sent account information.

Fraudulent Order: The operator usually places a small order, paying with a genuine cashier's cheque drawn on a foreign bank. The operator then places another, somewhat larger order, again paying with a genuine instrument. Then you receive an order by courier. Your Ivorian partner urgently needs a large quantity of your product air-shipped. Confident in your partner, you ship, but this time the cashier's cheque (which looks the same) is a forgery. Experienced business people usually require full payment in advance of shipment or an irrevocable letter of credit confirmed by a reputable international bank.

Charitable Donation: The operator offers to make a donation to your organization, asking for bank account information (see Money Transfer, above). Then the operator loots the account or asks for advance payment of a fee to ensure conversion of local money into dollars.

Contract: The operator claims to have a Côte d'Ivoire government contract and needs your company's expertise to carry out the job. The operator scams you by collecting thousands of dollars in "fees" before you can do business.

Crude Oil: The operator claims to have an allocation of crude oil to sell. Sometimes the operator claims to be working on behalf of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Then come demands for various fees to supply you with the crude; of course, you never get your cargo. Businesses lacking experience with Nigeria's petroleum industry should approach with great caution any proposal involving crude oil sales.

Business Opportunity: The operator convinces you to explore a business opportunity by visiting Côte d'Ivoire. Once you arrive, the operator takes charge of your life, trying to keep you from contacting friends, family, or the Canadian Embassy in Abidjan. By various means, sometimes including violence or threats of violence, the operator extracts money from you. This type of scam becomes particularly dangerous for a victim who has entered Côte d'Ivoire without a valid Côte d'Ivoire visa, issued by a Côte d'Ivoire Embassy, or Consulate.

All travellers MUST have a visa prior to arrival in Côte d'Ivoire and must pass through immigration formalities upon entry into the country. Letters addressed to immigration officials have no validity.

Visa Card Scams: A Canadian company receives an order for standard equipment. The Ivorian company pays for the goods by Visa credit card. The Canadian company receives proper authorization from the bank or financial institution, but shortly after, the true owner of the Visa credit card objects to the purchase and claims the card has been compromised by persons unknown. Unfortunately, the Canadian company has already shipped the goods by air and suffers a financial loss.

CONTACT INFORMATION

The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
Africa and Middle East Trade Division
125 Sussex Drive
Ottawa, ON, K1A 0G2

Ask for the Commercial Officer responsible for Côte d'Ivoire at (613) 944-4000. If you already have a contact name, you can also fax your request at (613) 996-9709.

Embassy of the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire
9 Marlborough Avenue
Ottawa, ON, K1N 8E6
Tel.: (613) 236-9919
Fax: (613) 563-8287

Criminal Operations Branch
Economic Crime Directorate
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
1200 Vanier Parkway
Ottawa, ON, K1A 0R2
Tel.: 613-998-6050 or 613-998-6069
Fax: 613-993-4299

PhoneBusters National Call Centre
P.O. Box 686
North Bay, Ontario
P1B 8J8
Tel.: 1-888-495-8501
Fax: 1-888-654-9426 or 705-494-4008
Web site: www.phonebusters.com

BACK TO TOP

18. ANNEX

N/A

BACK TO TOP