Niger Gets A New President

The Forever Transition: Niger Gets New ‘President’ Niger Niger’s military junta leader, Abdourahamane Tiani, was sworn in on Wednesday as the country’s president for a five-year transition period, a move that aims to halt attempts by the regional Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to reinstate democracy following the country’s 2023 coup, France 24 wrote. The five-year transition period, which also begins on Wednesday, remains “flexible,” said Mahamane Roufai, the secretary general of the government, speaking at a ceremony in the capital Niamey where the new transition charter was approved. Tiani, an army veteran who led the soldiers who deposed Niger’s elected government in June 2023, was elevated to the highest military rank of army general, cementing the power he has held since the coup. Following the coup, Niger’s junta had proposed a three-year transition period but when ECOWAS rejected the proposal and threatened to intervene with force, Niger left the bloc. Neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso, both of which have had coups in recent years and are currently run by juntas, have also left ECOWAS. The two countries earlier this year joined forces with Niger to address security concerns in the central Sahel region, forming an alliance known as the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), explained Reuters. Still, analysts say that Niger’s military government has failed to stop the jihadist violence it used as justification for seizing power. Instead, the insurgents have grown stronger. Share this story Disco