内容摘要：He remembered his family being welcomed off the boat in Alderney by the Army and Salvation Army before the family were put up in a hotel.

He remembered his family being welcomed off the boat in Alderney by the Army and Salvation Army before the family were put up in a hotel.

However, Thiam has faced criticism from political opponents for having been absent from Ivory Coast for 20 years, which they say means he has poor recognition among Ivorians.He believes, however, that his years outside his country have, in fact, helped build his profile at home.

"A lot of Ivorians watched my international career. The same way they watched the famous football players, they watched me, they knew me," he said.Thiam described himself to the BBC as "a numbers guy"."Ivory Coast in 1999 was 125th in the world [In the UNDP Human Development Index]. We are now 166, so we're down 41 spots. We're among the bottom 30 countries in the world," said Thiam.

He believes that this is as a direct result of years of political violence."The first sentence of my platform is an Ivory Coast at peace inside its borders and at peace with its neighbours," explained Thiam.

"Ivory Coast is a mosaic. You go to any part of the country, there are people on both sides of the border who are absolutely similar, speak the same language. So the only viable model for Ivory Coast is to get along well with its neighbours."

Ivory Coast faces an increasing security threat from Islamist insurgents operating from bordering Mali and Burkina Faso., have been barred from running.

Reacting to the ruling, Thiam said: "It's no surprise that this court ruling comes as our support among voters continues to grow."After 15 years in power, RHDP leaders are running scared. They want to monopolise power rather than face the judgement of the electorate."

After becoming the first Ivorian to pass the entrance exam to France's prestigious Polytechnique engineering school, he returned to Ivory Coast and took up politics.In 1998, aged 36, he became planning minister before the PDCI was ousted from power in a coup the following year.