Challenges…Worth Surmounting

At the age of 44, Bassirou Diomaye Faye has become Senegal’s fifth President after the opposition candidates and that of the ruling party, Amadou Ba, conceded defeat following the Sunday March 24, 2024 first round vote for the presidential seat. Alongside other youths, Faye is part of an upcoming generation of African politicians. He portrays himself as a man of change and break away with the past. Since his election, he has announced numerous challenges he has to overcome in order to put the country back on the rails. 
Faye says the very foundation of his political project is “the rehabilitation of the institutions of the Republic” and “the restoration of the State based on the rule of law” which he asserts were flouted by outgoing President Macky Sall. The new President wants to fight against what he terms “hyper-presidentialism”, which has led to a “stranglehold of the executive on legislative and judicial powers”, resulting in “instrumentalization of justice”. The incoming Head of State is promising to limit the powers of the President, hoping to introduce impeachment, the post of vice-president, prohibit the accumulation of political mandates, fight corruption and introduce alternatives to imprisonment. The new President has vowed to reclaim sovereignty, a word he used no fewer than 18 times in his manifesto, which includes a commitment to renegotiating mining and hydrocarbon contracts that are set to take effect by the end of this year.
Faye also wants to reassess fishing accords with foreign powers, as the fish resources which support some 600,000 Senegalese families are dwindling, while European and Asian fishermen are benefiting. He emphasized the need to develop the primary sector to ensure food security and move towards self-sufficiency, notably the staple of rice. 
The President-elect is also promising monetary reform with the possible introduction of a new currency, “the Senegal”, in place of the CFA franc, a regional currency which predates independence 65 years ago from former colonial master...