His resignation from the government last Wednesday, foreshadowed a reshuffle of the executive, but the Ivorian Prime Minister Patrick Achi was finally reappointed on Tuesday, April 19, by the Head of State Alassane Ouattara.

"It is to take into account the global economic situation and the necessary reduction in state spending that the government which will be put in place this week will be tightened. Mr. Prime Minister, you have my instructions to this effect", launched Alassane Ouattara addressing Patrick Achi, before the parliamentarians gathered in Congress, National Assembly and Senate, in the political capital Yamoussoukro. 

Patrick Achi must now propose a government team of around thirty names against forty currently.

A new vice-president

While this position had been vacant for almost two years, the Ivorian president also appointed a new vice-president: the central banker Tiémoko Meyliet Koné.

Governor of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO) since 2011, Tiémoko Meyliet Koné is "a brilliant economist" and an "outstanding technocrat", according to Alassane Ouattara.

"He is a man of consensus and probity who has my full confidence," added the head of state.

Approved by the parliamentarians, Tiémoko Meyliet Koné went up to the podium to shake hands with the president.

He should take the oath in the next few days.

Born in 1949, Tiémoko Meyliet Koné will therefore leave the BCEAO, of which he was governor since 2011 and where he notably supervised the ongoing reform of the CFA franc.

"I thank you for shortening your mandate to come and serve your country", greeted President Ouattara.

Before becoming governor of the BCEAO, he had had a long career within the institution.

He also had a short political career in Côte d'Ivoire: he was chief of staff to Prime Minister Guillaume Soro between 2007 and 2010, Minister of Construction, then special adviser to the President of the Republic Alassane Ouattara, in charge of economic and monetary.

"This is a personality who has demonstrated her personal and professional qualities in all the high positions she has held in public administration, the Ivorian government and outside Côte d'Ivoire. “, added the head of state.               

The post of vice-president, sanctuary in the last constitutional reform of 2016, had been vacant since July 2020 and the resignation of Daniel Kablan Duncan for "personal convenience". 

“The security situation is calm and under control”

In addition to these appointments, Alassane Ouattara outlined in a thirty-minute speech the achievements of his government since his re-election in October 2020.

"The security situation is calm and under control throughout the national territory", declared the Head of State, referring to the jihadist threat in the north of Côte d'Ivoire, coming from its neighbors, the Mali and Burkina Faso, which for several years have been plagued by violence from groups linked to Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.

On the political level, Alassane Ouattara also welcomed the consolidation of "peace and stability" and the establishment of a "political dialogue which has helped to further appease" the country.

After two and a half months of debate, the political parties had notably undertaken "to abandon violence as a mode of accession to power".

This dialogue was convened after the 2020 presidential election violence which left 85 dead and 500 injured. 

The question of the succession of Alassane Ouattara arises in the ranks of the presidential party, although the president has not yet officially pronounced on his will or not to run for a fourth term.

The next elections in Côte d'Ivoire, municipal and regional, must be held in 2023. The presidential election must take place in 2025.

With AFP

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