Senegal's President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has appointed a new government, despite an initial threat by his own party to boycott the process. Pastef, led by former prime minister Ousmane Sonko, said it would not participate, citing disagreements over the cabinet's composition, but five of its members ultimately appeared on the final list.
New prime minister Ahmadou Al Aminou Mohamed Lô unveiled a 30-member cabinet on Monday evening, but without the backing of Pastef, the party to which President Bassirou Diomaye Faye still belongs.
Pastef, led by Ousmane Sonko, had announced it would "not participate in this government" over what it described as "points of disagreement." The new cabinet contains none of Sonko's close allies and no senior Pastef figures — with one significant exception.
Five Pastef members ultimately accepted ministerial posts, defying their party's instructions, according to RFI's correspondent in Dakar..
Among them is Yankhoba Diémé, who moves from the transport portfolio to head the armed forces ministry. No decision has yet been taken on whether the five will be expelled from the party, a member of Pastef's executive committee told RFI. They have, however, already been removed from the party's internal WhatsApp channels, and several members of their staff resigned on Tuesday morning.
Pastef holds its congress on Saturday 6 June, when the matter is expected to be addressed.
Potential political deadlock
The new government was announced 11 days after Faye dismissed Sonko as prime minister. Sonko has since been elected president of the National Assembly, with the backing of 132 of the assembly's 165 members, giving him considerable scope to obstruct the president's agenda.
The two men had been long-time allies before parting ways after months of reported tension, leaving Senegal facing both political uncertainty and a severe financial crisis.
Sonko wrote on social media on Monday that he had met Faye and that "points of disagreement" had emerged over the future role of Pastef, which holds a large parliamentary majority. He said the party would "not participate in the next government and will not be represented by any ministers," adding: "We wish the new team every success." He repeated similar argument in a press conference on Tuesday.
His statement came just an hour before Lô unveiled the cabinet list, which retained Cheikh Diba as finance minister as negotiations continue with the International Monetary Fund over a new lending programme. Diba's portfolio has been expanded to include the economy ministry, which Lô said would create greater coherence in policymaking.
Sonko is a vocal critic of the IMF, while Faye has been less outspoken on the issue and Lô's position remains unclear.
The shadow of the debt crisis
The political upheaval comes as Senegal attempts to manage a crisis stemming from the discovery in 2024 that debt had been misreported by the previous government. The IMF subsequently froze its $1.8 billion lending programme after the country's end-2024 debt level was found to have reached 132 per cent of economic output.
Diba told parliament on 22 May that Senegal expects to resume talks with the IMF in the week of 8 June and hopes to reach agreement on key points by 30 June.
Faye will chair the new government's first council of ministers meeting on Friday, Lô said.
(with newswires)
