Deby sworn in as Chad’s President ending three years of military rule

Mahamat Idriss Deby was sworn in as Chad’s President this week after three years as interim president of a military regime, Reuters reports.

Deby took control of the central African country after rebels assassinated his father- President Idriss Deby- in 2021. The father had ruled Chad after a coup in the early 1990s.

Chad is the first military led government in the Sahel region to hold elections after a wave of coups swept across West and Central Africa. 

However, Deby’s electoral victory was controversial. He came first with 61% of the vote while the runner up Succes Masra claimed fraud and vote manipulation. In the wake of his unsuccessful challenge to the results Masra resigned as prime minister last week.

Although Chad has substantial oil reserves, it is remains poor and more than 40% of the population lives below the poverty line. The arrival of more than half a million refugees from neighboring Sudan has further strained Chad’s meagre resources.