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Marie-Thérèse Houphouët-Boigny

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Marie-Thérèse Houphouët-Boigny
Marie and her husband Félix Houphouët-Boigny at the White House attending a state dinner with U.S. President John F. Kennedy and his wife First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy in 1962
First Lady of Ivory Coast
In role 3 November 1960 – December 7, 1993
President	Félix Houphouët-Boigny
Preceded by	Position created
Succeeded by	Henriette Konan Bédié
Personal details
Born	Marie-Thérèse Brou (1930-09-17) September 17, 1930 (age 93) near Abidjan, Ivory Coast, French West Africa
Political party	Democratic Party of Ivory Coast – African Democratic Rally
Spouse	Félix Houphouët-Boigny ​ ​ (m. 1952; died 1993)​

Marie-Thérèse Houphouët-Boigny (née Brou; born 17 September 1930)^[1] is the former First Lady of Ivory Coast. Her husband was Félix Houphouët-Boigny, the first President of Ivory Coast from 1962 to 1993.

She was born in 1930 in a suburb of Abidjan, Ivory Coast, French West Africa.^[2] She was one of her parents' six children. When Brou was 16 years old, she and nineteen other Ivorian girls were chosen to attend private school in France.^[2] While living in France, she met her husband, Félix Houphouët-Boigny, when she was 21 years old.^[2] Houphouët-Boigny was more than 25 years older than her. Brou and Houphouët-Boigny married in 1952, shortly after he divorced his first wife that same year.^[3]

Houphouët-Boigny caught the eye of the media during 1962 visit to the Kennedy White House, and was dubbed "Africa's Jackie" or 'Black Jackie Kennedy" by the media.^[2][4] In 1987, Houphouët-Boigny founded the N'Daya International Foundation, dedicated to improving the health, welfare, and education of children in Africa. As the Foundation's president, she led numerous projects in support of children.^[5] In 1989, she helped create and produce Kimboo, an animated series aired on BET, to offer cartoon heroes to African children.^[5]

Houphouët-Boigny was the first lady of the Ivory Coast for 33 years, until her husband's death in 1993. Félix and Marie-Thérèse did not have any biological children, but adopted three children together.^[6]

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