By David Lewis ABIDJAN, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Ivory Coast held ceremonies to mark northern rebels officially returning local tax collecting and administrative powers to the central government on Thursday but true reunification and post-war polls remain elusive. Thursday's deadline was the latest test of a troubled process aimed at reuniting the world's top cocoa grower, which was once the region's most stable country but has endured years of crisis since it was divided by a 2002-2003 war. New revenues would boost an economy that has been hit by a poor cocoa harvest, and provide a tonic for a peace process that the United Nations said "remained plagued by considerable funding gaps," jeopardising progress already made. Despite promises, New Forces (FN) rebels have resisted returning power to civilians and continue to collect millions of dollars in monthly revenues from customs duties and local taxes. Technical and financial problems meant a Nov. 30 election date was missed and the head of President Laurent Gbagbo's party said the country could not hold polls before October 2009. "This Thursday, 15 January, 2009, is the day of truth as to whether Ivorians will trust the Secretary General of the FN but also the head of state," Soir Info, a privately-owned Abidjan newspaper, said in an article on Thursday. "The FN haven't fulfilled their promises since the (previous) launch of reuniting the treasury (in 2008) so their credibility is on the line. If they carry it off, they will have taken an important step in restoring the state," it added. As ceremonies to mark the return of tax collectors and judges were held in Bouake, the former northern rebel capital, FN officers were still discussing how to implement agreements. A pro-Gbagbo newspaper said Prime Minister Guillaume Soro's FN were calling for delays in handing over the money and power. "January 15 will not be an event but a process. You will not see the administration fully redeployed," said a regional diplomat. "It will take at least a few days, if not weeks." Estimates of lost state revenues vary wildly but the diplomat said studies of trucks ferrying cocoa, coffee and timber showed at least 40 billion CFA francs ($79.60 million) worth of duties each year had been collected by the rebels. In 2007, resource watchdog Global Witness estimated the rebels had been earning around $30 million a year from illicit cocoa taxes. "IVORIAN TANGO" The most recent deadline follows intense rows in December between the rebels and the presidential camp over disarmament, positions in the new army and reuniting the treasury. An agreement was then signed in Ouagadougou calling for the Jan. 15 handover and stipulating that disarmament must be completed two months before elections are held. The deal would also give the former rebels 5,000 posts in the new army and 4,000 positions in the police and gendarmerie. After so many delays, the diplomat expected both sides to demand movement from the other before conceding ground. "This is the Ivorian Tango," he said. "Ouaga 4 (as the deal is known) was to buy some time. There was pressure on them. Don't be surprised if we have a Ouaga 5." Having once enjoyed a flourishing economy, Ivory Coast's government faces mountains of debt, and poverty rates have jumped from 38 percent to nearly 50 percent during the crisis. Businessmen who have watched their country's slide say handover of power by the rebels is a must for investors. "The restoration of the state would help restore security and justice. They must hand over. We can't have a country without proper administration." Jean-Louis Billon, president of Ivory Coast's Chamber of Commerce, told Reuters. "There is lots of talk but the reality is different. There is a parallel economy," he said of the north. ($1=502.5 Cfa Franc) (Editing by Daniel Magnowski and Jon Boyle)
RNPS IMAGES OF THE YEAR 2008 French soldiers with the LICORNE force in Ivory Coast take part in a training exercise in Man September 24, 2008. French peacekeepers in Ivory Coast ...
