IVORY COAST troops took over the last remaining French army base in the country today, as the former colonial power withdraws forces across west Africa.

But Defence Minister Tene Birahima Ouattara said 80 French soldiers will stay behind to advise and train the Ivorian military.

“The world is changing and changing fast,” Mr Ouattara said in a joint press conference with French Armed Forces Minister Sebastien Lecornu.

Anti-imperialist military takeovers in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger forced the expulsion of French troops who had long maintained a military presence across the Sahel, besides wielding significant economic sway over countries using currencies tied to the Bank of France.

Their example has encouraged popular protest at the ongoing French military footprint in neighbouring countries, prompting Chad to declare an end to its military co-operation agreement with France in November, and now Ivory Coast, despite seeking to maintain friendly relations, asking France to pull out.

France retains military bases in Djibouti and Gabon.