Senegal’s new president wants better relations with Morocco

The election of Bassirou Diomaye Faye in Senegal is expected to mark a reinforcement of ties between the country and Morocco, The Arab Weekly and agencies reported on April 3.

Faye, a tax inspector turned politician, received 54.2 % of the vote late last month, convincingly defeating Amadou Ba – who was in prison as recently as two weeks prior to the poll on March 25. Veteran President Macky Sall was ineligible to stand as a candidate due to term limits in the country’s constitution. 

After 12 long years of Sall at the helm, the election of Faye, Senegal’s youngest ever President at the age 44, has been seen as representing change not only for Senegal, but for neighbouring countries also. 

Reuters noted that Faye will run the country “with humility” after three years of chaotic protests in opposition to his predecessor in various cities across Senegal.   

The 44-year-old said in his inauguration speech that the Senegalese people can now look to the future: “In electing me, the Senegalese people have decided on a break with a past,”

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Morocco’s King Mohammed VI was the only leader from a country outside the West African region to be invited to Faye’s inauguration in Senegalese capital Dakar, which took place on April 2. 

Although the monarch did not attend the event, Morocco was represented by Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch, who was accompanied by Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita. 

The Moroccan King was among the first leaders to congratulate Mr Faye after his election triumph, saying in a message to the new leader that he epitomizes the “community of values and destiny” shared by the two countries, built on a foundation of shared culture and tradition. 

The swearing-in ceremony of the new President took place in the presence of several heads of state, presidents of the commissions of the African Union (AU), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU). 

The Arab Weekly/Reuters