Tunisian PresidentKais Saied has appointed Najla Bouden Romdhan as the first female primeminister in Tunisia and the Arab world, two months after he sacked the previousgovernment and seized wide-ranging executive powers.
"This is thefirst time in the history of Tunisia that a woman has led a government,"Saied said as he met with Romdhan on Wednesday, according to a video from thepresident's office. "It is an honor to Tunisia and Tunisian women."
Romdhane, 63, wasassigned on Wednesday to form a new government amid growing domestic andinternational discontent about the president’s power seizure.
Tunisia has had noprime minister and has been in limbo since Saied froze the parliament andseized executive powers on July 25.
The move notablysidelined the Islamist party that dominated parliament, and critics denouncedit as a coup that threatens Tunisia's young democracy. Saied said it wasnecessary to save the country from economic and social crisis.
The country has woninternational plaudits for its democratic transition but many Tunisians haveseen little improvement in their lives and have become disillusioned with adysfunctional and corrupt political process.
Mr. Saied's movesplaced vast executive powers in the hands of the president, who will himselfhead the cabinet.
His rulings onSeptember 22 also extended the suspension of parliament.
Saied said he willwork with Romdhane “with a firm will and determination to combat corruption andchaos that pervaded in many state institutions”.
Before she wasappointed prime minister, she was assigned by the Ministry of Higher Educationand Scientific Research to implement programmes with the World Bank, accordingto the official Tunisian News Agency.
In 2011, she wasappointed director-general in charge of quality at the Ministry of HigherEducation.