August 22, 2022

Mali has appointed an interim prime minister to act in place of leader Choguel Maiga, who is resting amid media reports he had been hospitalised.

Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga, currently government spokesman and minister of territorial administration, is the new acting prime minister, a government statement said.

Earlier this month, Paris-based Jeun Afrique magazine reported that Choguel Maiga had a stroke, citing sources close to him. read more

One of Choguel Maiga’s advisers denied this when contacted by Reuters, and his office said he would resume his duties by the following week. He did not.

Mali is governed by a military junta that came to power in a 2020 coup and has promised to organize democratic elections in 2024.

Choguel Maiga had been one of the government’s most outspoken voices in repeated public rows with West African neighbors and international allies who criticised its military cooperation with Russian mercenaries and repeated election delays.

Abdoulaye Maiga has also made strong public statements as government spokesman against former colonial ruler France, including telling French President Emmanuel Macron in July to abandon his “neocolonial” and “condescending” attitude.

REUTERS