The Cosmos Yopougon shopping center has just been bought by the Ivorian group Mayelia Participations for an amount of 10.5 billion CFA francs, or around 16 million euros. This operation marks the entry of the group led by David Fofana into the mass distribution sector, after having established itself in automobile technical inspection. Built on 3 hectares in the heart of Yopougon, opposite Place Figayo, Cosmos Yopougon remains to this day the only modern shopping center in the most populous commune of Abidjan (with more than two million inhabitants). Inaugurated on November 22, 2018 by Prime Minister Amadou Gon Coulibaly, the infrastructure offers 14,000 m² of gross leasable area spread over two levels, more than 60 brands including Carrefour Market over 2,800 m², restaurant spaces, a cinema complex, banking establishments, as well as 450 parking spaces. Since its opening, the site has established itself as the busiest shopping center in Côte d'Ivoire since 2019. In May 2021, it recorded 397,360 visitors over one month, with an average occupancy rate of 93%. The promoters' projections suggest an annual attendance of between 3.6 and 4 million people. The first building in French-speaking West and Central Africa to receive EDGE green certification from the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank group, it reduced its carbon emissions by 44% thanks to its energy efficiency system. In 2021, its owner company Emergence Plaza issued a green bond of 10 billion FCFA at 7.5% over eight years, to refinance a bank loan of 8.4 billion FCFA taken out with a local bank.

From SOTRA to mass distribution

The buyer, David Fofana, was born on April 13, 1979 in Abidjan. A graduate in multimodal transport management at the Regional Academy of Maritime Sciences and Techniques and at the European Transport School in Paris La Défense, he completed internships at the port of Antwerp and at Transport for London. He started at SOTRA where he participated in the development of lagoon transport, then joined the Snedai group where he contributed to the creation of the Société de Transport Lagunaire of which he became general director. It also goes through Bolloré Transport & Logistics. In 2017, he created Mayelia Automotive, approved by the Ivorian State in 2019. The structure became Mayelia Participations, a holding company active in transport, technology and real estate.

An investment which diversifies the scope of the group

The turning point came on April 2, 2025 in Geneva, during the signing of the takeover of the shares of the Ivorian Society of Automobile Technical Control, SICTA, owned 95% by the Swiss SGS SA and 5% by Georges N'Dia. The operation was formalized in Abidjan on April 29, 2026. With more than 28 centers across the country, Mayelia Automotive now claims leadership in technical inspection, a market where SICTA has operated for more than fifty years.

With Cosmos, Mayelia changes scale and enters into competition with the historic distribution operators, Prosuma, CDCI and CFAO Retail, holders of the Carrefour franchise.