Burkina Faso junta names new PM after dismissing government

The head of Burkina Faso’s military junta named former communications minister Rimtalba Jean Emmanuel Ouedraogo as prime minister late on Saturday.

The appointment comes one day after the country’s ruling military leader Captain Ibrahim Traore dismissed outgoing premier Apollinaire Joachim Kyelem de Tambela and dissolved the government.

No reason was given for his removal. Tambela had headed three successive governments since Traore seized power in a 2022 coup.

Who is Rimtalba Jean Emmanuel Ouedraogo?

Ouedraogo, who served in Tambela’s cabinet, is a journalist by trade.

He was formerly editor-in-chief and later director of the Sahel country’s state television network.

Ouedraogo is also a close ally of Traore.

After the September 2022 coup, Traore tapped Ouedraogo to serve as communications minister and government spokesperson.

He remained key civilian figure in the military administration and remained in the role across three cabinet reshuffles.

Political instability in Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso country has been grappling with instability since a January 2022 coup led by Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba.

Damiba was then overthrown by Traore around eight months later.

Under Traore, the West African country, along with its fellow junta-led neighbors in Mali and Niger, has distanced itself from former colonial ruler France and pivoted towards Russia instead.

ess/zc (AFP, Reuters)