Chad’s Prime Minister Pascal Yoadimnadji died at Val de Grace military hospital in Paris, France, of a brain hemorrhage on February 23 after suffering a heart attack. There have been no reports of foul play or suspicion surrounding his death.
Yoadimnadji was a key ally to President Idriss Deby and was heavily involved in developing Chad’s oil sector from 2005 forward. However, Chad remains a low priority for most international investment and development, due to poor health care—illustrated by Yoadimnadji’s emergency evacuation for medical treatment- -and infrastructure and to turbulence in the east from spillover from Sudan’s Darfur (Previous Report) and from internal rebels (Previous Report). Stability in Chad continues to be threatened by the trouble brewing in Darfur.
Yoadimnadji was buried in N’djamena on February 26. The country will honor the statesman with seven days of mourning, and the government issued the following statement: “The prime minister was a great statesman with a strong sense of responsibility to the service of his country. He was a great uniter of the Chadian people” (source).
His death, while tragic, will have little impact on the future of Chad. He was a senior figure in Chad’s government but not Chadian politics. Deby, who seized power in a coup in 1990, remains the key power broker. Minister of Infrastructure Adoum Younousmi acted as interim head of the cabinet, until February 26, when Delwa Kassire Coumakoye, who heads the National Rally for Development and Progress Party, was name the new prime minister. Coumakoye was a leading rival to Deby in the 2006 presidential elections, and his nomination appears to be a step toward reconciliation and political cooperation by Deby.
