Paramaribo [Suriname], July 8 : 71-year-old physician and veteran lawmaker Jennifer Geerlings-Simons has been elected as Suriname's first female president, receiving parliamentary approval to lead the economically troubled South American nation, Al Jazeera reported on Monday.
As per Al Jazeera, her election followed a coalition agreement in the National Assembly, which secured her the required two-thirds majority vote on Sunday, that came after an inconclusive general election in May and increasing calls for the departure of outgoing President Chandrikapersad Santokhi, whose administration faced criticism over corruption allegations and strict austerity measures.
Geerlings-Simons, the head of the National Democratic Party, ran unopposed and is set to be sworn in on July 16.
In her acceptance speech, she acknowledged the historic nature of her presidency and the difficult road ahead.
"I am aware that the heavy task I have taken on is further aggravated by the fact that I am the first woman to serve the country in this position," she said, as quoted by Al Jazeera.
Her vice president will be Gregory Rusland, and together they inherit a nation grappling with economic strain, subsidy cuts, and growing public discontent.
Although Santokhi's government secured debt restructuring and IMF support to restore macroeconomic stability, the resulting austerity sparked mass protests, as reported by Al Jazeera.
With offshore oil production expected to begin in 2028, Geerlings-Simons has pledged to stabilise the country's finances and boost revenue by improving tax compliance, particularly targeting small-scale gold miners.
She now faces the challenge of guiding Surinamehome to roughly 646,000 people and rich in cultural diversitythrough a delicate period. As the country nears its 50th anniversary of independence from the Netherlands in November, hopes are pinned on oil wealth and strengthened relations with China, especially under the Belt and Road Initiative, which Suriname joined in 2019, Al Jazeera reported.
Despite its diverse populationcomprising descendants of Africans, Indigenous peoples, Indians, Indonesians, Chinese, and Dutch settlersSuriname remains one of South America's poorest nations, making the upcoming administration's task all the more critical.
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