Gabon ex-junta chief Brice Oligui Nguema becomes president

Brice Oligui Nguema, a general who led a coup that ended five decades of Bongo family rule in Gabon, was inaugurated as the African nation’s president on Saturday.

At a ceremony attended by 16 other African heads of state at a packed stadium north of the capital Libreville, the former leader of the military junta was sworn in for a seven-year term.

Nguema, 50, who served under Omar Bongo and his son Ali Bongo, has vowed to reduce rampant youth unemployment in the oil-rich nation and pursue education reforms.

“Today we celebrate democratic renewal,” he said during his swearing-in.

“I promise to serve, protect and unite all Gabonese, that is the meaning of my oath.”

Nguema also promised “a different Gabon, in line with our aspirations […] we will diversify our economy through the transformation of our raw materials.”

How did Nguema come to power?

Nguema swept elections on April 12 with nearly 95% of the vote, defeating seven other candidates, including outgoing Prime Minister Alain Claude Bilie-By-Nze, who finished second with just 3%. None of the other six candidates scored more than 1%.

His inauguration ends 19 months of military rule since he led the coup that ousted Ali Bongo — who is also his cousin — in August 2023.

At the time, Nguema had vowed to restore civilian rule through “free, transparent and credible elections” after a transitional period.

Nguema faces serious challenges in leading the oil-wealthy nation

During that transition, he launched multiple construction projects in a bid to boost Gabon’s severely lacking infrastructure, including its aging electricity grid which suffers frequent power cuts.

He also vowed to crack down on corruption in the country, which is saddled by massive debt that is forecast to reach 80 percent of GDP this year.

Despite enjoying vast oil riches, a third of Gabon’s 2.3 million people live in poverty, while youth unemployment is around 40%.

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Who else attended the inauguration ceremony?

Gambian President Adama Barrow, Senegal’s Bassirou Diomaye Faye, Djibouti’s Ismail Omar Guelleh and Equatorial Guinea’s Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo were all in attendance.

The respective presidents of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda, Felix Tshisekedi and Paul Kagame, also attended the ceremony.

The two Central African neighbors are currently engaged in talks to halt the fighting in the eastern DRC.