Guinea-Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embalo has appointed a former Finance Minister Geraldo Martins to head the next government following legislative elections in the West African state that ushered in power-sharing.
In the June elections, a coalition headed by the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) triumphed with 54 seats out of 102, defeating Embalo’s Madem G15 party, which received 29 votes.
Martins, the deputy head of PAIGC, was appointed as the new prime minister by Embalo in a decree that was posted by his office late Monday on social media. Pai-Terra Ranka, the coalition, put forward Martins.
Nuno Gomes Nabiam, in office since 2020, is succeeded by him. The two million-person former Portuguese colony has a protracted history of unrest.
After having a disagreement with the legislature, Embalo disbanded it in May 2022. However, his political bet was unsuccessful since people supported the PAIGC, the nation’s longtime dominant party.
Internal strife impacted the Madem G15 alliance, and many voters were worried about the economy because cashew nut prices, a significant source of income, had fallen.
The United Nations estimates that 1/5 of the population is food insecure.
Since its independence in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has seen four military takeovers, the most recent of which occurred in 2012. Embalo’s overthrow was attempted in February 2022.