The Historic Town of Grand-Bassam is the older section of the city of Grand-Bassam in Ivory Coast. It was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2012.

History

The first capital of Côte d'Ivoire, the Historic Town of Grand-Bassam, is an example of a colonial town built in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The town had areas for different purposes, such as trade, government work, and homes for Europeans and Africans. The site includes the N’zima African fishing village and colonial buildings with open spaces, covered walkways, and gardens. Grand-Bassam was the most important port, economic center, and legal center of Côte d'Ivoire. It shows the complex relationships between Europeans and Africans and the later movement for independence. As a lively center of French trading posts in the Gulf of Guinea, which came before modern Côte d'Ivoire, it brought people from across Africa, Europe, and the Mediterranean Levant.