Youssouf Saleh Abbas
Prime Minister of Chad
Incumbent
Assumed office 15 April 2008
President Idriss Déby
Preceded by Delwa Kassiré Koumakoye
Born c. 1953Abéché, Chad (then a colony of France
Youssouf Saleh Abbas (born c. 1953[1]) is a Chadian political figure who has been Prime Minister of Chad since April 2008. He was previously a diplomatic advisor and special representative of President Idriss Déby.
Abbas was born in Abéché[1][2] in Ouaddai Region, in the east of Chad.[2][3] He studied in the Soviet Union and then in France, earning a master’s degree in international law.[2] Back in Chad, he worked at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as head of the Multilateral Cooperation Division and as Director of International Cooperation from November 20, 1979 to January 30, 1981.[1] He was then diplomatic advisor to Goukouni Oueddei, the President of the Transitional Government of National Unity (GUNT), from June 1, 1981 to December 25, 1981[1] and Director of the Cabinet of the Head of State[1][3] from December 6, 1981 until Oueddei’s ouster on June 7, 1982.[1]
Later, Abbas was advisor to the Director-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from November 20, 1992 to December 15, 1996.[1] He was also Vice-President of the Sovereign National Conference, which was held from January 1993 to April 1993.[1][3] From December 16, 1996 to August 13, 1997, he was Director-General of the Ministry of Planning and Cooperation.[1]
Abbas, in opposition to President Déby, joined the Tibesti-based Movement for Democracy and Justice in Chad (MDJT), a rebel group led by Youssouf Togoïmi, when it was formed in October 1998, serving from Paris[4] (he lived in exile in France for several years[2]) as the group’s External Coordinator. On October 31, 2001, he resigned from the MDJT, along with three other members of the MDJT’s External Coordination, due to what he described as Togoïmi’s “excesses”.[4] After an agreement with the government, he returned to Chad.[2] He joined with Déby in 2006[3][5] and became Déby’s Advisor for International Relations and Cooperation on December 24, 2006,[1] as well as Déby’s Special Representative to the European Union Force[1][3][5] and the United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT)[1][5] on November 17, 2007.[1] He remained in his posts as Advisor and Special Representative until his appointment as Prime Minister.[1][2]
On April 15, 2008, Déby appointed Abbas as Prime Minister,[6] dismissing Prime Minister Delwa Kassiré Koumakoye. Speaking on the radio afterwards, Abbas said that he would seek to work with other political parties when forming his government. He noted that popular expectations were high but said that his task would not be easy.[3] The appointment of Abbas, an easterner, marks a departure from Déby’s standard practice of appointing Prime Ministers from the south (Déby himself is a northerner) and was presumably intended to help resolve the rebellion in the east. At the time of his appointment he was considered a relative unknown among the public, but well-regarded in political circles.[2]
