Djerad named Algeria's first PM in post-Bouteflika era

Algeria's President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Saturday named university professor and former diplomat Abdelaziz Djerad as prime minister as he embarks on building a new government to handle political unrest and a looming economic struggle.
On Saturday, Tebboune tasked Djerad with forming the new government, a brief presidential statement said, according to Algeria's state news agency APS.
Djerad, 65, served as a presidential secretary-general under president Liamine Zeroual, who ruled Algeria for five years until 1999. He was sidelined by former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who was ousted in April after two decades as head of state.
A political science professor, Djerad has also served as the head of Algeria's state International Cooperation Agency, and as a diplomat in the Foreign Ministry. He succeeds Noureddine Bedoui, who was appointed prime minister by Bouteflika in March.
The massive street protest movement that prompted Bouteflika to step down regarded Tebboune's election this month as illegitimate and it seems unlikely to accept any government he appoints.
The protesters rejected any election that took place while the military stayed involved in politics and Bouteflika-era figures retained powerful positions in the state. Algeria's authorities publicly welcomed the street protests, casting them as a patriotic movement aimed at refreshing Algerian politics and ending corruption.
Djerad spoke several times on radio after the protests began, backing them and demanding that Bouteflika and his allies quit power.
Tebboune, himself a former prime minister, was one of five former senior officials approved as candidates for the presidential race, winning 58% of the votes on Dec. 12 amid protests and an electoral boycott that reduced turnout to 40%.
The opposition say that despite Tebboune's election, ultimate power remains with the army, whose own chief, Ahmed Gaed Salah, died suddenly of a heart attack on Monday.
It leaves Algeria with a new president, prime minister and army chief during its most acute political crisis in decades. Meanwhile, the country faces a longer-term slide in its trade and fiscal balances after years of lowered energy prices.
With state coffers relying on energy exports for most annual revenue, the new government may be forced to make tough cuts in spending. The parliament and outgoing interim government have already agreed a 9% cut in public spending for 2020.
Other members of the new government are expected to be named in the coming days.
Tebboune, who took office on December 19, pledged massive political and economic reforms during his five-year term in an attempt to calm monthslong protests in the energy-rich country. The reforms intend to turn the page on the Bouteflika era, which was marred by mismanagement and cronyism.