Last March, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, 44, became the youngest Head of State in all of Africa, when he was inaugurated as president of the Republic of Senegal, a nation with which Cuba will fulfill, on August 9, half century of ties at the highest level, after the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1974.
Faye obtained her degree in Law at the Cheikh-Anta-Diop University, in Dakar, the country’s capital city, located at the extreme west of the continent and very advantageous for maritime traffic with Europe and America.
He then trained as a public finance inspector at the National School of Administration (ena), and worked as an inspector at the Department of Taxes and Estates.
Together with Ousmane Sonko, now Prime Minister, in 2014 he launched the African Patriots of Senegal Party for Work, Ethics and Fraternity (Pastef), declared in opposition to the Government of former President Macky Sall, by which it was dissolved.
Pastef criticized the ineffectiveness of the socioeconomic model in force since colonial independence from France in 1960, and affirmed its commitment to the people through fundamental values such as patriotism and love of the country, productive work, ethics, morality and brotherhood among the Senegalese.
Four years later, Faye joined the Pastef Executive Bureau as president of the National Movement of Patriotic Cadres (Moncap) and, at the same time, assumed the General Secretary of the Autonomous Union of Tax and Domain Agents (SAID).
In October 2022, he was elected general secretary of Pastef, given the possibility that Sonko, the political leader of that force, would be deprived by law of exercising its leadership, which occurred when he was sentenced to two years in prison. thus being prevented from running in the 2024 presidential elections.
Faye would also later be taken into police custody, accused of spreading false news and defaming institutions in a message through which he defended Sonko.
He was released two weeks before the presidential elections, for which he had been proposed as a candidate since November 2023, despite being detained.
On March 24, 2024, Faye was the winner, with more than 50% of the votes.
In his first speeches, the young President has committed himself to the fight against corruption and other economic deformations.
He has also signaled his interest in helping to build a sovereign, just and prosperous Senegal, as part of a developing continent; as well as the willingness to review relations with the European Union (EU), so that they better reflect their realities.
His government agenda includes the renegotiation of exploitation contracts for important industries in the nation, strongly impacted by inflation and youth unemployment.
- Date of birth: March 25, 1980.
- Place of birth: Mbour, Senegal
- Studies: Cheikh-Anta-Diop University, Dakar.
- Position: President of the Republic of Senegal.
- Political affiliation: African Patriots of Senegal for Work, Ethics and Fraternity (Pastef).
