Aïssata Tall Sall (born 12 December 1957) is a

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

ese lawyer and politician who has been the country's Foreign Minister since November 2020.

Early life and education

Tall was born on 12 December 1957 in

Podor Podor ( Wolof: Podoor) is the northernmost town in Senegal, lying on Morfil Island between the Sénégal River and Doué River on the border with Mauritania. It was the location of the ancient state Takrur. It is home to a ruined French colonial ...

and comes from a conservative

Marabout A marabout ( ar, مُرابِط, murābiṭ, lit=one who is attached/garrisoned) is a Muslim religious leader and teacher who historically had the function of a chaplain serving as a part of an Islamic army, notably in North Africa and the Sah ...

family. She is the eldest of nine daughters and two sons and moved to

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from :wo:daqaar, daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar ...

for her education after primary school. She studied law at the

University of Dakar Cheikh Anta Diop University (french: Université Cheikh Anta Diop or UCAD), also known as the Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar, is a university in Dakar, Senegal. It is named after the Senegalese physicist, historian and anthropologist Cheik ...

and when the Bar Council would not integrate them, she and thirty other young lawyers took them to the Court of Appeal and won. She was registered with the Senegal Bar in 1982.

Career

Tall specialised in business law before becoming involved in politics. She was an advocate in a number of political trials against the

Wade Wade, WADE, or Wades may refer to: Places in the United States * Wade, California, a former settlement * Wade, Maine, a town * Wade, Mississippi, a census-designated place * Wade, North Carolina, a town * Wade, Ohio, an unincorporated communi ...

regime from 2000 to 2012. She also represented Ivorian generals

Lassana Palenfo Lassana Palenfo (born January 25, 1941 in Ivory Coast) is an Ivorian military general. He has held various offices in several international sporting organisations. He was the director of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa ( ...

and

Ibrahim Coulibaly Ibrahim Coulibaly (24 February 1964 – 27 April 2011)

, former

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

lese prime minister

Agbéyomé Kodjo Messan Agbéyomé Gabriel Kodjo (born 12 October 1954"Yamgnane recalé" ...

and

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mal ...

an interim president

Dioncounda Traoré Dioncounda Traoré (born 23 February 1942) is a Malian politician who was President of Mali in an interim capacity from April 2012 to September 2013. Previously he was President of the National Assembly of Mali from 2007 to 2012, and he served as ...

. During the trial of Palenfo and Coulibaly, filmmaker

Abderrahmane Sissako Abderrahmane Sissako (born 13 October 1961) is a Mauritanian-born Malian film director and producer. His film '' Waiting for Happiness'' (''Heremakono'') was screened at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival official selection under Un Certain Regard, wi ...

approached her and she portrayed herself in the 2006 film ''

Bamako Bamako ( bm, ߓߡߊ߬ߞߐ߬ ''Bàmakɔ̌'', ff, 𞤄𞤢𞤥𞤢𞤳𞤮 ''Bamako'') is the capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2009 population of 1,810,366 and an estimated 2022 population of 2.81 million. It is located on the Niger Rive ...

'', about a case against the IMF and the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...

. Tall served as Minister of Communication in the government of Abdou Diouf from 1998 to 2000. She was elected Mayor of

in April 2009 and re-elected in June 2014. She was also a member of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

in the coalition Benno Bokk Yaakaar ("United in the Same Hope"). Tall is a member of the

Socialist Party of Senegal The Socialist Party of Senegal (french: Parti Socialiste du Sénégal, PS) is a political party in Senegal. It was the ruling party in Senegal from independence in 1960 until 2000. In the 2000 presidential election, the party's candidate and previ ...

. In June 2014, she contested an internal election for Secretary General of the Party against

Ousmane Tanor Dieng Ousmane Tanor Dieng (January 2, 1947 – July 15, 2019) was the First Secretary of the Socialist Party of Senegal. He was vice-president of the Socialist International from 1996 until his death. Personal life Born in 1947 in Nguéniène, Seneg ...

. The electoral competition was ended, however, by the president of the National Steering and Evaluation Committee and

mayor,

Khalifa Sall Khalifa Ababacar Sall (born 1 January 1956) is a Senegalese politician. He is a former government minister and a former mayor of Dakar Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from :wo:daqaar, daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital city, capital and List o ...

, citing risks to unity and cohesion, leaving Tanor to be re-elected unopposed. She briefly left the party in 2018 to set up her own movement called "Daring the Future", but did not receive enough signatures to contest elections. Tall supported

Macky Sall Macky Sall (, wo, Maki Sàll, fuc, 𞤃𞤢𞤳𞤭 𞤅𞤢𞤤‎, italic=no, Maki Sal; born 11 December 1961) is a Senegalese politician who has been President of Senegal since April 2012. He was re-elected President in the first round voti ...

during the February 2019 presidential election, saying it was "in the interests of Sengal" and was soon after appointed a "Special Envoy" of the President. She was appointed Foreign Minister in Sall's replacement cabinet on 1 November 2020, the first woman in the role. At the ceremony to handover the role from her predecessor Amadou Ba, she set out a roadmap focused on fighting against "clandestine emigration" and the idea that success is only possible elsewhere. Tall has said that her desire is to be the first female head of state in Francophone Africa.

Personal life

Tall is married to Issa Sall, a magistrate. She speaks French and Pular.

References

External links

Government biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tall Sall, Aissata Living people 1957 births People from Saint-Louis, Senegal Cheikh Anta Diop University alumni Mayors of places in Senegal Women mayors of places in Senegal Members of the National Assembly (Senegal) Socialist Party of Senegal politicians Foreign ministers of Senegal Female foreign ministers Women government ministers of Senegal 21st-century Senegalese women politicians 21st-century Senegalese politicians