Niger Swears In Bazoum Amid Tensions

Mohamed Bazoum, sworn in on Friday as president of the troubled Sahel state of Niger, worked for years as the right-hand man of his predecessor Mahamadou Issoufou.

The 61-year-old steps into the world spotlight with one of the toughest jobs around — taking the helm of a deeply poor country battling a double jihadist insurgency.

Bazoum successfully campaigned in Niger’s elections as Issoufou’s anointed successor, a unifier of the nation and a defender of the rural poor.

Bazoum has previously served as Interior Minister as well as Foreign Minister in previous governments.

He garnered more than half the share of the vote in the country’s run-off presidential election held on February 21.

His rival, Mahamane Ousmane, however rejected the election result claiming fraud.

Bazoum, whose victory was confirmed by the Constitutional Court on March 21, began his speech by paying tribute to the first political steps of his Party for Democracy and Socialism (PNDS) ruling party more than 30 years ago, before turning his attention to the need to invest in education, tackle corruption and improve security.