with our correspondent in Abidjan, Pierre Pinto

This Friday, deputies and senators were supposed to meet once again in Congress in Yamoussoukro to begin examining the modification of the Electoral Code. But ultimately, in a statement published Thursday evening, the presidency announced that due to the epidemic, which makes "parliamentary meetings difficult, the President of the Republic, given the urgency, will proceed to modify the Electoral Code by means of ordinance."

The statement adds that the modification "will take into account the points of agreement from the second phase of political dialogue."

Following several weeks of negotiations between the government, political parties and civil society at the beginning of the year, the opposition had walked out, denouncing an attempt by the government to force the matter through.

Prime Minister Amadou Gon Coulibaly subsequently stated that there were four points of agreement in principle: citizen sponsorship of candidates, raising the deposit from 20 to 50 million CFA francs, the minimum vote threshold to be reimbursed this deposit lowered to 5%... Agreement also, according to the Prime Minister, on provisions against electoral transhumance.

"The dialogue took place, it was inclusive, everyone was present. There were open discussions and I am pleased with the points of agreement" Amadou Gon Coulibaly had declared a month ago.