President Kais Saied named a geologist as Tunisia’s first woman prime minister on Wednesday.
Saied asked Najla Bouden Romdhane, a professor of geophysics who implemented World Bank projects at the education ministry, to form a government as quickly as possible, prompting a surge in Tunisian bond prices.
Elected in 2019, Saied has been under mounting domestic and international pressure to name a government after he dismissed the prime minister, suspended parliament, and assumed executive authority in July in moves his foes call a coup.
Last week, he suspended most of the constitution, saying he could rule by decree during an “exceptional” period calling into question democratic gains after Tunisia’s 2011 revolution that triggered the Arab Spring protests.
Speaking in an online video, Saied said Bouden’s appointment honoured Tunisian women and asked her to propose a cabinet in the coming hours or days “because we have lost a lot of time”.
The new government should confront corruption and respond to the demands and dignity of Tunisians in all fields, including health, transport, and education, he added.
Saied has also appointed a woman, Nadia Akacha, as chief of staff, his closest and most powerful aide.
Bouden is likely to have less direct power than previous prime ministers under the 2014 constitution, however, after Saied said last week that during the emergency period the government would be responsible to the president.
