Libya PM announce a new cabinet reset

Libya’s political landscape shifted as Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah announced a 13 minister reshuffle aimed at strengthening the western Government of National Unity (GNU), as reported by The Libya Observer and agencies on March 12th.

The announcement signals one of the most substantial personnel changes undertaken by the Libyan administration in recent months, and comes at a politically delicate moment for the country’s troubled executive landscape.

The reshuffle was accompanied by a joint political message from Presidential Council head Mohamed al-Menfi, High Council of State chief Mohamed Takala, and Dbeibah, signalling support for steps to complete the government’s formation.

That endorsement is notable because it follows public controversy earlier this month over whether the GNU, often described by its eastern rivals as a caretaker authority, had the legal and political authority to alter its ministerial lineup without broader consensus.

Furthermore, in February, Libya’s eastern and western courts clashed over each other’s authority to rule on constitutional matters; in response to the political crisis, the UN Security Council called for unity among the rival leaders.

Among the headline changes, Salem al-Zadma was named deputy prime minister, while Mohamed al-Ghouj took over the health portfolio.

Other appointments covered culture, tourism, housing, sport, industry, youth, water resources, higher education, economy and women’s affairs, alongside a new minister of state for displaced affairs and a minister of state for digital economy and artificial intelligence.

The move also appears designed to project continuity after a period of institutional friction. Menfi had previously questioned the constitutional basis for unilateral cabinet changes, while other actors within Libya’s divided governing structures had voiced competing interpretations of the government’s mandate.

The latest joint stance, therefore, suggests either a temporary political understanding or a pragmatic truce on the need to keep state institutions functioning.

In Libya, ministerial resets often carry both administrative and factional logic, with Dbeibah likely hoping that a reorganised cabinet can strengthen his government’s claim to relevance at a time when legitimacy, performance and authority remain under constant scrutiny.

The Libya Observer plus agencies, Maghrebi.org