Khartoum (AFP)

Sudan remains Thursday in anticipation of the announcement of its first government since the fall of Omar al-Bashir, the debate continues around the choice of ministers who will manage the multiple ills of the country during its transition to a civilian power .

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok was to announce the names of the prime ministers on Wednesday, but a source close to the economist said Thursday he had not yet made his choice.

"The deliberations continue and it is not clear when they will end," said this source to AFP.

Invested on August 21, Hamdok must choose his cabinet members from the names proposed by the Forces for Freedom and Change (FLC), the spearhead of the protest movement, under the terms of a landmark agreement signed on December 21. August 17.

Only the positions of Interior and Defense Ministers will be appointed by the military serving on the Sovereign Council, a civilian-led, but military-led, body that will lead the transition to a more than three-year transition. civil power.

On Saturday, Hamdok promised that his 20-member government would be composed of technocrats chosen according to their "skills" and that he would be "a homogeneous team up to the challenges."

Aged 63, Abdallah Hamdok, a former UN collaborator, also said he would focus on "fair representation of women" in the government.

- Challenges -

Once appointed, his cabinet must meet on 1 September with the Sovereign Council, according to the terms of the agreement.

This date may be postponed if the announcement of a new cabinet is postponed again.

One of the government's first challenges will be to rebuild the country's economy, which collapsed after the secession of the South in 2011, as Sudan lost three-quarters of its oil reserves.

Two decades of US sanctions for human rights violations, lifted in 2017, have worsened the situation and the country is facing rampant inflation, chronic shortages of basic necessities and a glaring shortage of foreign currency.

The economic distress of the Sudanese was the main cause of the outbreak of the demonstrations in December 2018, after the government's decision to triple the price of bread.

The demonstrations had quickly turned into a protest against Bashir, who has been in power since 1989. During the nearly eight months of protests, more than 250 people died in the crackdown, according to a committee of doctors close to the protest.

The future government will also face another major challenge: the conclusion of peace agreements within six months with rebel groups in the regions of the country in conflict, including those who rejected the agreement of 17 August.

Several of these groups, located in marginalized states - such as Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan - have fought Bashir's forces for years.

The new prime minister has promised to "stop the war and build a lasting peace".

Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed in Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan, and millions have been displaced.

- "Worrying" -

The postponement of the announcement of the cabinet of Mr. Hamdok on Thursday caused a start of concern among the Sudanese.

"This is not a good thing ... The country has been without a government for nearly five months now," said AFP Hassan Abdelmeguid, a 48-year-old official.

"Sudan is facing great challenges and needs a government to be formed as soon as possible," he added.

Others, like Sanya Mohamed, have tried to relativize.

"If it makes it possible to find competent people for these positions (of ministers), then that's fine," said the 32-year-old official.

"But if (the delay) is caused by disagreements about the candidates, then it's worrying," she said. "The country will not support it".

Last month, the beginning of the transition process had a first delay, without consequence, of 48 hours, at the time of the formation of the Sovereign Council.

© 2019 AFP