Senegal’s Young President Wants a New World Order
Senegal’s Young President Wants a New World Order - The New York Times
Africa’s Youngest Elected Leader Wants a New World Order
In his first interview with Western media since becoming president of Senegal, Bassirou Diomaye Faye said the United Nations has to change to reflect changing world demographics.
Africa’s Youngest Elected Leader Wants a New World Order
In his first interview with Western media since becoming president of Senegal, Bassirou Diomaye Faye said the United Nations has to change to reflect changing world demographics.
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President Bassirou Diomaye Faye rocketed to international fame last March when he went from prison to president-elect of the West African nation of Senegal in 10 days, becoming the youngest elected leader on the continent.
He carried the hopes of the youngest, fastest-growing population on earth, who saw in him a fresh start, and a break with Africa’s many aging presidents and military rulers. But until now, he has rarely given interviews.
Speaking with The New York Times last week — in his first interview with a Western media outlet — he made the case for a different world order that gives more weight to Africa.
Before traveling to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, Mr. Faye called for “a reform of the world system and an equality among its peoples.”
Demographic importance should help determine who holds power at the United Nations, Mr. Faye said, pointing out that by 2050, Africa’s population will likely be nearly 2.5 billion — accounting for an estimated one of every four people on the planet by then.
His remarks came amid growing calls for permanent African representation on the United Nations Security Council. This month, the United States said it would support two permanent seats for African countries. But this is unlikely to happen soon, analysts say, as many other countries are demanding seats and any change requires the assent of all five permanent members with veto power.
Mr. Faye said that the current world order is hurting Africans.
For instance, he said, Africa is hardly responsible for climate change, and yet when emissions from the developed world cause the polar ice caps to melt, “this has repercussions on our shores.” He pointed to Bargny, a town in Senegal plagued by coastal erosion caused by rising sea levels where dozens of homes were recently swept away.
And he railed against the injustice of rich nations continuing to use coal while refusing to finance fossil fuel projects in developing countries. Production recently began at Senegal’s first offshore oil project, and the country is trying to build the infrastructure to convert its gas into electricity.
Mr. Faye gave the interview amid the pomp of Dakar’s presidential palace, all red carpets and gold lions. But he has gotten rid of some of the furniture in the office used by his predecessor, Macky Sall, making it a little more austere.
Mr. Faye spent most of the election’s run-up awaiting trial in jail, charged with defamation and contempt of court. He was chosen for the presidential ticket by Ousmane Sonko, Senegal’s most formidable opposition politician, who was also jailed and barred from running. When Mr. Sall released the two men 10 days before the election, thousands celebrated.
Mr. Faye won more than 50 percent of the vote in the first round of the March election, beating the chosen candidate of Mr. Sall and eliminating any need for a runoff.
At 44, Mr. Faye said he feels uniquely placed to understand the challenges young Africans face. He said their main desire is “to be useful — useful to themselves, their families, their country.”
“We have to give answers to our young people, so they are not thrown into permanent despair,” said the soft-spoken Mr. Faye. More despair, he added, would help both traffickers of migrants and jihadist groups with recruitment.
Just outside the palace lay the glimmering Atlantic Ocean, where thousands of Senegalese people of Mr. Faye’s generation have died trying to make it to Europe in boats.
Ramping up job training for youth is one of his top priorities, he said.
“What’s important is that young people have qualifications,” he said, “so that when they see a job they can apply — or if they choose to migrate legally, they can be employable in the country they have chosen to go to.”
Mr. Faye and his prime minister, Mr. Sonko, captivated young Senegalese by denouncing political elites, promising to negotiate better deals with oil and gas companies, and pledging to reform the regional currency, the CFA, which is backed by France.
But six months into their term, young people are still fleeing the country in search of a better life. In the first half of 2024, nearly 20,000 migrants reached the Canary Islands, part of Spain, after crossing by boat from the coast of West Africa, according to the U.N.’s migration agency, an increase of 167 percent from 2023. Dozens of shipwrecks have been recorded.
“People expect them to take measures to tackle the high cost of living and youth unemployment,” said Ndongo Samba Sylla, a Senegalese economist, but he said that the country’s leaders were held back by high levels of debt servicing inherited from previous administrations. “There is very little they could do in these areas.”
Unable to get some of his proposals through an opposition-dominated Parliament, Mr. Faye recently called a snap parliamentary election for November. He acknowledged that the people who elected him in “immense hope” will judge him on one main thing: his ability to transform their prospects.
“In a country like Senegal, everything is a priority and everything is urgent,” he said.
Ruth Maclean is the West Africa bureau chief for The Times, covering 25 countries including Nigeria, Congo, the countries in the Sahel region as well as Central Africa. More about Ruth Maclean
Macky Sall,
Ousmane Sonko
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