Senegal’s political landscape faces fresh instability after Ousmane Sonko, the ousted prime minister and leader of the Pastef party, announced on Monday that his organization will not participate in the country’s new government. According to France 24, the declaration follows a meeting between Sonko and President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, an ally-turned-rival, where the two failed to reconcile their visions for the executive branch.
Sonko took to the social media platform X to clarify his party’s position. He stated that “points of disagreement” hindered any potential cooperation, leading to the decision that Pastef “will not participate in the next government and will not be represented by any ministers.” Sonko added, “We wish the new team every success.”
President Faye triggered the current political friction on May 22 by dismissing Sonko and dissolving the existing cabinet. Faye subsequently appointed Ahmadou Al Aminou Lo, a seasoned economist, to lead the new government. The move was met with immediate resistance from lawmakers within the National Assembly, who defied the president by reinstating Sonko as a member of parliament and electing him as the assembly’s speaker with the support of 132 of the 165 total representatives.
This breakdown in cooperation arrives as Senegal grapples with a severe debt crisis. The nation’s economic stability was shaken in 2024 following the discovery of misreported debt figures from the previous administration. According to the outlet, these findings pushed the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio to 132% by the end of 2024.
The financial crisis prompted the International Monetary Fund to freeze its $1.8 billion lending program to Senegal. The government is now under pressure to stabilize its fiscal outlook, with the finance minister indicating last month that the state expects to resume negotiations with the IMF next week. Officials hope to reach an agreement on key economic benchmarks by June 30, a deadline made more precarious by the current executive-legislative standoff.
