This archive report was first published on 19 December 2019.
Algeria's new president, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, was sworn in on Thursday, December 19, 2019, a week after winning a widely boycotted election.
Tebboune succeeds veteran president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who was forced from office in April 2019 in the face of mass demonstrations.
The 74-year-old Tebboune is seen as close to the armed forces chief, Ahmed Gaid Salah, who has been the North African country's effective ruler since Bouteflika quit.
He and other top brass attended the swearing-in ceremony alongside Tebboune's defeated rivals for the presidency.
However, protesters see Tebboune as part of the same corrupt system that has ruled Algeria since independence in 1962, and have vowed to continue their demonstrations until their demands are met.
Tebboune has promised to engage in dialogue with the Hirak protest movement, appoint young ministers, and push for a new constitution.
But with Algeria heavily dependent on oil exports and its budget hard hit by low crude prices, Tebboune may face difficult decisions to address the country's economic situation.
