Senegal president dissolves parliament, calls election

Senegal's President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has dissolved the opposition-led parliament, paving the way for a snap election six months after he was voted in on an anti-establishment platform. The new election will take place November 17, Faye said in a televised address in which he asked voters to give his party a mandate so that he can carry out the "systemic transformation that I promised." Analysts say that Faye's political party, PASTEF, has a high chance of securing a majority, given his popularity and his margin of victory in the March presidential election. Faye, 44, won the vote in March to become Africa's youngest elected leader, less than two weeks after he was released from prison. His rise has reflected widespread frustration among Senegal's youth with the country's direction — a common sentiment across Africa, which has the world's youngest population and a number of leaders accused of clinging to power for decades. During the presidential campaign, he promised widespread reforms to improve the living standards of ordinary Senegalese, including fighting corruption, reviewing fishing permits for foreign companies, and securing a bigger share from the country's natural resources for the population. He was elected with 54 per cent of the votes. But six months later, these pledges have yet to materialise. Faye and Ousmane Sonko, the country's prime minister and a popular opposition figure who helped catapult Faye to victory, have blamed the parliament. PASTEF does not hold a majority in the assembly, which Faye says has blocked him from executing the promised reforms. The presidential election in April tested Senegal's reputation as a stable democracy in West Africa, a region rocked in recent years by coups and attempted coups. Both Faye and Sonko were released from prison less than two weeks before the vote following a political amnesty announced by outgoing President Macky Sall. Their arrests had sparked months of protests and concerns that Sall would seek a third term in office despite term limits. Rights groups said dozens were killed and about 1,000 were jailed. Over 60 per cent of Senegalese are under 25, and 90 per cent work in informal jobs. Senegal has been hit by skyrocketing inflation in recent years, making it difficult for them to get by. The country is also the major source of irregular migration to Europe, with thousands leaving every year on rickety fishing boats in search of economic opportunities. Thursday's announcement came days after one such boat carrying almost 90 people capsized, killing at least 39.