Ms Harlette Badou N’Guessan Kouamé holds a Master’s degree in Communication and Business Negotiation from the School of Communication and Management (ESCG) in Brussels, Belgium.
She began her professional career in 2002 at the former Telecommunications Agency of Côte d’Ivoire (ATCI), working as a communications officer in the autonomous communications department. After rising through the ranks, Ms Kouamé was appointed Deputy Director of Documentation and Archives in 2011.

Following the creation of the Regulatory Authority for Telecommunications/ICT of Côte d’Ivoire (ARTCI) in March 2012, she served as Head of the ITU-ARTCI Activities Coordination Service from 2015 to 2016. From 2017 to 2019, she became Head of the External Relations Department, and from 2019 until joining the government, she led the Public Relations Department at ARTCI. After her career in telecommunications, she entered politics and was elected Mayor of Arrah in October 2018, becoming the first woman to head the municipal council of that locality. On 6 April 2021, in the government of Patrick Achi, Harlette Badou was appointed Minister of Culture and the Creative Industries, succeeding Raymonde Goudou Coffie. In September 2023, she was re-elected with 80% of the vote in the municipal elections.

Ms Kouamé served as Secretary General of the Union of Cities and Communes of Côte d’Ivoire (UVICOCI) before being appointed First Vice-President of UVICOCI on 31 October 2024.
Since 17 December 2023, she has been the National President of the Union of Women of the Rassemblement des Houphouëtistes pour la Démocratie et la Paix.