VZCZCXRO1952
PP RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHDK #1330/01 1721343
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 211343Z JUN 07
FM AMEMBASSY DAKAR
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8618
INFO RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHLMC/MCC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DAKAR 001330 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR AF/W, AF/RSA, INR/B AND INR/AA 
PARIS FOR POL - D'ELIA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINR PREL EFIN ECON SG
SUBJECT: NEW GOVERNMENT HAS STRONG ECONOMIC TEAM 
 
DAKAR 00001330  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
SUMMARY 
------- 
¶1.  (SBU) President Wade, following a historically low turn out at 
recently concluded legislative elections, ousted Prime Minister 
Macky Sall.  Even though Wade was not expected to keep Sall he used 
him as a scapegoat for being unable to maintain unity within the 
ruling Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS) and to successfully counter 
the opposition's boycott.  By appointing a technocrat with a budget 
and finance background, Cheikh Hadjibou Soumare, as the new Prime 
Minister, Wade is sending a signal about his resolve to address 
financial and economic issues.  While there are many familiar faces, 
the make-up of the new Cabinet also shows his wish to rebuild his 
party to win back the hearts and minds of citizens who have lost 
faith in the political class.  END SUMMARY. 
 
A CAUTIOUS APPROACH 
------------------- 
¶2.  (SBU) The current cabinet consists of 37 members including 11 
women.  Unfortunately, Wade did not keep his widely publicized 
pledge to create a leaner cabinet.  (NOTE:  He had mentioned 16-20 
ministries.  END NOTE).  He removed 17 Ministers and appointed 14 
new ones.  Importantly, he doubled the number of women, underlining 
his commitment to the spirit of parity he has longed espoused.  The 
new cabinet is a carefully balanced mix of senior politicians close 
to Wade and technocrats who will be tasked to fix critical financial 
deficits and chronic agricultural problems, prioritize a development 
agenda, and head-off social unrest.  Another key aspect of the 
Cabinet is the number of young and women Ministers who were brought 
in to inject new blood into the ranks of the PDS.  The Cabinet also 
reflects Senegal's religious, geographic and ethnic diversity. 
 
SIGNAL TO RECALCITRANTS 
----------------------- 
¶3.  (SBU) Party rebels who opposed Wade by rejecting the party's 
centralized form of selecting its candidates for legislatives 
elections and who then instructed their supporters not to vote for 
their party's own nominees, were all removed.  They include Minister 
of Planning and International Cooperation, Sustainable Development 
and International Cooperation Lamine Ba, Minister of Commerce 
Khoureychi Thiam, Minister of Renewable Energy Sina Diatta, and the 
Minister of Urban Affairs Assane Diagne. 
 
ENDING COALITIONS 
----------------- 
¶4.  (SBU) The Cabinet reflects Wade's decision to end the coalitions 
he had formed with several small parties to further divide the 
opposition.  Seven ministers belonging to these smaller parties were 
sacked.  Mamoune Niasse, a well-known religious leader, active in 
the political scene who was placed in the previous Cabinet to weaken 
Wade's nemesis, Idrissa Seck, is now angling to become the leader of 
the opposition.  In the end, these small parties brought little of 
value to Wade in terms of votes, but he used them effectively as 
"bloodhounds" to attack opposition leaders and to inflate the number 
of parties he could cite as allies. 
 
PREPARING THE SUCCESSION 
------------------------ 
¶5.  (SBU) Many observers believe that Wade is preparing his son, 
Karim, to succeed him.  As rumors abound, Wade's office issued an 
unusual press release four days ago to refute claims that President 
Wade was planning to have his son succeed him.  Former Senior 
Minister Aminata Tall, who many expected to become Prime Minister, 
is conspicuously absent.  Some of the other former government 
heavyweights, such as Prime Minister Macky Sall, Minister of Youth 
Alioune Sow, Secretary General of the Government Alioune Badara 
Cisse, and Minister of Women, Family, Social Development and Women's 
Entrepreneurship Aida Mbodj, were all removed.  That said, Wade once 
again showed his political acumen as Sall was elected President of 
the National Assembly and Mbodj Second Vice-President.  Thus, they 
have not been completely sidelined.  Newcomers include people close 
to Karim's camp such as Mamadou Lamine Keita, Minister of Youth and 
Employment, and Ms. Innocence Ntap, Minister of Civil Service, Labor 
and Professional Organizations. 
 
A STRONG ECONOMIC TEAM 
---------------------- 
¶6.  (SBU) By appointing economic technocrats with little political 
ambition Wade is sending a clear message that "he gets it" and that 
the economy must be jump-started.  Prime Minister Soumare, Senior 
Finance Minister Abdoulaye Diop, Minister of Commerce A. Hadjibou 
Ndiaye, and Junior Minister of Budget Ibrahima Sarr are the 
country's most senior and longest serving economists.  The three 
graduated from the National School of Administration and Judicial 
Studies.  Soumare has been Wade's Junior Minister of Budget since 
May 23, 2001.  He was most previously the Director General of 
Finance at the Ministry of Finance.  Senior Minister Diop has been 
 
DAKAR 00001330  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
Wade's Minister of Economy and Finance since May 2001.  He was first 
appointed in April 2000 as Junior Minister for Budget.  Ibrahima 
Sarr, who replaces Soumare as Junior Minister of Budget, was most 
recently the Junior Minister for Budget's Chief of Staff.  Amadou 
Habibou Ndiaye, the new Minister of Commerce, is also an upgrade 
having previously been a Director of Cabinet, a key interlocutor for 
the 2005 African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum in Dakar, 
and a past participant in the International Visitors' Program. 
 
MANY FAMILIAR FACES 
------------------- 
¶7.  (U) Many key Ministers did not change.  Cheikh Tidiane Gadio 
retains his post as Senior Minister for Foreign Affairs; Cheikh 
Tidiane Sy remains Senior Minister of Justice; Ousmane Ngom stays at 
Interior but was promoted to Senior Minister; Habib Sy retains the 
Infrastructure portfolio; Becaye Diop is still Minister of Armed 
Forces; Samuel Sarr stays at Energy; Mame Birame Diouf keeps the 
Culture portfolio; Moustapha Sourang remains at Education; and Issa 
Mbaye Samb, the former Minister of Hygiene and Sanitation, goes back 
to his earlier post as Minister of Health. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
¶8.  (SBU) Wade's Cabinet strikes a balance between change and 
continuity as he continues to focus on reconstructing a PDS mired in 
internal fights.  Senior politicians in the Cabinet, who are all the 
President's men, will primarily focus on that task, while the 
technocrats and younger political leaders will work closely with his 
son Karim who looks likely to increase his involvement in state 
affairs. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) As a technocrat and economist, the new Prime Minister does 
not have a political network and is not a player in the current 
succession fight.  We believe that Soumare, Diop and Sarr know their 
domain inside out.  Their background may not serve as a total 
firewall from political pressures, but does mean any mistakes they 
might make will not be because they are in unfamiliar territory. 
Challenges they face include resuming negotiations with the IMF, 
pursing efforts for the implementation of the Accelerated Growth 
Strategy, pursuing privatization, reducing the internal debt burden, 
controlling the off-budget agencies, and managing the fiscal 
deficit.  However, in the current tense political climate and 
difficult financial circumstances further Cabinet changes and 
political realignments are not out of the question.  Moreover, with 
an expanded National Assembly and a new Senate coming on-line, 
Senegal does not yet appear ready to tackle much-needed civil 
service reform.  END COMMENT. 
 
¶10.  (U) Visit Embassy Dakar's SIPRNET Web site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/af/dakar. 
 
JACOBS