The Rassemblement Démocratique Africain (RDA, African Democratic Rally) was a political party in French West Africa formed by Félix Houphouët-Boigny of Côte d'Ivoire. The Pan-Africanist party was formed in Bamako, Mali, in October 1946 after the French Fourth Republic's constitution was amended to allow African representatives to join the Assemblée Nationale (National Assembly). The RDA initially had ties to the Parti Communiste Français (PCF, French Communist Party), but Houphouët-Boigny led the party to a more moderate, pro-French stance. The RDA was made up from a number of natinonalist parties within French West Africa, such as the Parti Démocratique de la Côte d'Ivoire (PDCI, Democratic Party of Côte d'Ivoire) and the Parti Démocratique de Guinée (PDG, Democratic Party of Guinea).
Prominent party members included Félix Houphouët-Boigny (Côte d'Ivoire), Ahmed Sékou Touré (Guinea), and Modibo Keïta (Mali).
When De Gaulle and other members of the RDA called for continued relations with France and a form of federation, rather than independence, in 1958, Ahmed Sékou Touré rebelled opting for independence and Félix Houphouët-Boigny worked hard to block the formation of a federation. The effectively ended the role of the RDA as a Pan-African association.
