Ousman Sonko delivers a speech after he was appointed Prime Minister (Reuters)

In the presence of a number of African leaders, medalists and military uniforms, Senegalese President Basserou Diomaye Faye peacefully assumed power from his predecessor, Macky Sall, on April 2, 2024.

Immediately after the completion of the inauguration ceremonies, and in a step that was expected by those who follow political affairs, the new president issued his first decree appointing the leader of the opposition and head of the Bastif Party, Ousmane Sonko, as first minister (prime minister), charged with leading and forming his first government.

Just as the partners abroad view the new government with great anticipation and caution, the Senegalese street places many hopes on the new Prime Minister, who has always raised the slogans of welfare, decent living, and the fight against corruption.

Sonko entered politics armed with the support of many of the young people he worked with (French)

Profiles of the new Prime Minister

Sonko is considered one of the politicians in the history of Senegal who is closest to the people. He did not reach the position through political and social alliances and balances, but rather he was chosen based on the trust of voters who were convinced by his speeches and programs, and voted for the president who shares the leadership of the party and adopts the same ideas with him.

Because he received his early education in the separatist province of Casamas, Sonko grew up in the midst of rebellion, disagreements, and opposition to regimes, and embraced revolutionary and liberal ideas throughout his professional and political career.

He is classified as a man of law and economics, as he has a good education from the most prestigious Senegalese universities. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in public law in 1999, and a master’s degree in public finance in 2003. He also completed the requirements for a doctorate in economic law from the University of Lyon 3 in France, and completed Lots of research related to economics and financial policy.

At the beginning of his professional career, he entered politics, armed with the support of many young people with whom he worked in the tax, finance, and judicial sectors. He founded the “Patriots for Work, Ethics, and Fraternity” (PASTIF) party, through which he was elected as a parliamentary representative in 2017, then ran for the 2019 presidential elections and came in. Third place with 15.67% of the total votes.

Features of Sonko's government

48 hours after assuming the position of Prime Minister, Sonko announced on Friday evening, April 5, the list of his government, which included 25 ministers and 5 secretaries of state, most of whom are new faces to the general public. In his speech, he described it as "a government that embodies the project that is a systemic transformation that won the satisfaction of the Senegalese people with a victory in the first round of the elections."

The government formation expresses the Prime Minister’s tendencies to rely on competencies and personalities with a technocratic dimension, such as Foreign Minister Yassine Vall, coming from the United Nations, as well as Minister of Communication Dr. Alioun Sall, who was Director of Communications and Head of the Africa Office at the United Nations.

The ministerial team also included Dr. Sirin Jay, an agricultural scientist specializing in biochemistry and food technology.

In addition to activists from within the Pastif Party known for their struggle against the regime of former President Macky Sall, including Public Employment Minister Olivier Bocal, who was imprisoned because of his political stances, and was only released from prison last March along with the detainees from the Pastif Party.

The selection of Supreme Court prosecutor Othmane Dayan for the position of Minister of Justice constitutes a step towards justice reform, because he is one of the judicial figures known for respecting the judiciary and preserving its independence, according to what Senegalese reports address.

The new ministerial formation is distinguished by the presence of two military generals in it, namely the Ministers of Interior and Defense, who were previously removed by former President Macky Sall on the grounds of their abstention from using force against demonstrators in 2021. In a message that suggests President Basseiro’s approach to the necessity of political and military integration.

Poverty and immigration top the government's list

 One of the biggest challenges facing the new government is the high poverty rates of nearly 60% among the rural population, which represents 40% of all citizens in Senegal, and the spread of unemployment, which has reached 19.5%.

The Corona pandemic and the Russian-Ukrainian war have increased the country's economic troubles, as Senegal imports 70% of its food needs from abroad. World Bank statistics indicate a significant increase in the rate of international borrowing and debt, as the total outstanding external debt reached 32.13 billion US dollars.

The mass migration crisis - especially among young people due to the lack of decent living opportunities - constitutes a difficult challenge. During the year 2023, the Canary Islands alone received about 30,000 irregular migrants, most of them from Senegal, and irregular migration by sea to the European coasts caused the death of hundreds. From Senegalese youth.

In his election campaign, Basiro pledged to work to create job opportunities for young people that would save them from immigrating and risking their lives by sailing to the sea and infiltrating Europe. The issue of combating immigration and creating job opportunities was also one of the most important agendas of Sonko's party, which contributed to attracting Senegalese youth and marginalized groups.

One of the markets of the capital, Dakar (Al Jazeera)

Fighting corruption and moving on from the past

According to the corruption index issued by Transparency International in 2023, Senegal obtained 43 points out of 100. Despite the efforts made for transparency in management, recent years have witnessed major abuses in public spending.

In December 2022, the Accounting Council of Senegal approved major excesses in the amounts allocated to the fight against Covid-19, which led to the disappearance of 7 billion CFA francs, or 10.6 million euros.

Since 2014, Sonko has raised the slogan of fighting corruption. Through his work in finance and taxes, he was able to uncover many imbalances and bribery in the administrative apparatus, which caused him to be expelled from public office, where he was accused of violating the right to reserve and publish professional secrets.

According to the French newspaper Le Monde, Sonko was an opponent of Macky Sall because of his vision of corruption and mismanagement.

Despite the information the new Prime Minister possesses about the extent of transgressions and violations, he is unlikely to open old files that preceded his assumption of the position of government leadership that might lead to the conviction of political figures, because President Basserou announced moving on from the past and establishing a new Senegal.

Review gas and oil contracts

The new government is expected to review gas and oil contracts concluded in recent years. President Basseiro Faye pledged in his election campaign to review working conditions with companies engaged in extracting the country's wealth. In his first speech, after the inauguration, he said that he would publish all contracts with companies so that the citizen would be aware of his wealth.

Senegal expects GDP growth of more than 10% this year (Al Jazeera)

According to World Bank figures, Senegal expects GDP growth this year at a rate of about 10.6% and 7.4% in 2025.

Despite the former president’s warnings about the danger of harming contracts concluded with some foreign companies operating in the country, such as the British company BP, the Australian Woodside Energy Group, and the American Kosmos Energy, the new president Egypt “The necessity of bringing national interests into account in all agreements.”

According to the agreement concluded with Woodside, Senegal will begin producing gas from the Singomar field in the first half of this year at an estimated rate of 100,000 barrels per day. As for the Ahmeem field, which is shared with Mauritania and managed by the British company BP, its annual production volume reaches 2.5 million tons of liquefied gas, and its export will begin in the middle of this year after being delayed several times.

The new Prime Minister has a vision related to economic reform through reviewing gas and oil contracts, which he published in his 2018 book entitled “Oil and Gas in Senegal... Chronic Looting.” His book "Solutions", in which he presented his vision for solving economic and social problems, is an important reference from which President Basseiro Faye derived his electoral program.

Towards systemic change and BASERO commitments

In addition to the major problems facing the new government, such as restoring economic sovereignty by reviewing contracts, increasing financial resources, and heading towards exiting the French African currency, Ousmane Sonko has before him a busy schedule of the president’s obligations.

At the top of these commitments is the systemic change that Basserou promised through institutional reform, dialogue and national reconciliation, because Senegal has lived in recent years under the impact of major political crises that have contributed to widening the gap between the various actors in the scene.

Sonko has begun his steps towards softening the political scene, following in the footsteps of the president, who promised stability, calm, and reform of hearts, as he put it.

In his government announcement speech, Sonko said that government members must submit their resignation from all elective positions and political obligations so that they are free to carry out the tasks assigned to them, stressing that his government’s priority is to fight unemployment, good governance, economic sovereignty and achieving justice.

Source: Al Jazeera + websites