Ivory Coast President, Alassane Ouattara, on Friday appointed his brother Tene Birahima Ouattara as vice prime minister in a cabinet reshuffle.
The junior Ouattara, who is the incumbent Ivory Coast defence minister, now occupies two positions in his elder brother’s government.
The development came a few months after the octogenarian president won a controversial reelection in October 2025.
He was declared winner of the 2025 election for fourth term in office, extending his grip on power for another five years.
Upon becoming president on December 4, 2010, Mr Ouattara reviewed Ivory Coast constitution, scrapping term limit in 2016.
Ouattara, 84, a former deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund, has led the country since 2010 and has said that he intends to prepare the ground for a new generation of political leaders during his tenure.
The changes come as Ivory Coast, the world’s largest cocoa producer, seeks to build on nearly 15 years of sustained economic growth that has made it among the region’s fastest-growing economies.
