Sudan is moving forward to dissolve the current transitional government and announce a new cabinet before the end of this year, according to a top official of the Central Council of Freedom and Change Forces (FCF).
The official said the distribution of ministries among the partners of the transitional period is just a suggestion being discussed between the concerned parties, adding that no final agreement has been reached.
The armed movements are demanding a number of sovereign ministries, such as foreign affairs and finance, along with the ministries of education and urban development, revealed the official.
The Central Council is the highest political body of the Freedom and Change Forces, and among its tasks is receiving and approving nominations submitted by its constituent blocs before submitting them to the prime minister.
The official, who preferred to remain anonymous, said it was agreed to dissolve and reform the government and not just carry out a cabinet reshuffle.
The new cabinet will consist of 23 ministers and include the appointment of representatives of the armed movements in the Transitional Sovereign Council and Legislative Council.
Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok had suggested keeping the ministers of justice, irrigation, and Islamic endowments in the new lineup, according to sources.
The new government will include figures from a number of political parties after a number of independent ministers were criticized for their poor performance.
The sources said a young FCF leader is among the strongest candidates for the position of foreign minister, and is supported by the PM along with a number of the coalition’s blocs.
The ruling parties will hold a meeting soon to agree on lists of candidates for all ministries.
The Revolutionary Front wants to increase its representation in government, exceeding the quota stipulated in the Peace Agreement.
Separately, the Freedom and Change Forces are discussing accelerating the formation of the Transitional Legislative Council, as they study the appeals against some candidate lists submitted by committee forces.
The ruling coalition had previously denied that an agreement had been reached on dividing the shares of ministries in the new government. It said that Central Council had approved candidates based on their competence.
The prime minister revealed the new government will include 25 or 26 ministries after the ministries of energy, mining, industry, trade, labor, and social welfare were reformed to accommodate the parties of the peace process.
Based on the Peace Agreement, the armed movements will be granted 25 percent representation in the cabinet, three seats will be allocated to the Transitional Sovereign Council and 75 to the Transitional Legislative Council, which has yet to be formed.
