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The National Movement for the Development of Society (french: Mouvement National pour la Société du Développement, MNSD-Nassara) is a
political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...
in
Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesMamadou Tandja Mamadou Tandja (1938 – 24 November 2020) was a Nigerien politician who was President of Niger from 1999 to 2010. He was President of the National Movement for the Development Society (MNSD) from 1991 to 1999 and unsuccessfully ran as the MNSD ...
.


History


20th century

The MNSD was founded in 1989 by President
Ali Saibou Ali Saibou (17 June 1940 – 31 October 2011) was the third President of Niger from 1987 to 1993 succeeding the deceased Seyni Kountché. A member of the Djerma people, he was born in Dingajibanda, a village in the Ouallam arrondissement. Al ...
, as the only legal party in the country. However, by the end of 1990, the Saibou regime acquiesced to union and student demands to institute a multi-party democratic system. In 1991, two factions emerged within the MNSD, one behind
Mamadou Tandja Mamadou Tandja (1938 – 24 November 2020) was a Nigerien politician who was President of Niger from 1999 to 2010. He was President of the National Movement for the Development Society (MNSD) from 1991 to 1999 and unsuccessfully ran as the MNSD ...
(MNSD-Nassara) and the other behind
Moumouni Adamou Djermakoye Moumouni Adamou Djermakoye (May 22, 1939Cherif Ouazani"Six candidats pour un fauteuil" ''Jeune Afrique'', November 7, 2004 . – June 14, 2009Seyni Kountché Seyni Kountché (1 July 1931 – 10 November 1987) was a Nigerien military officer who led a 1974 coup d'état that deposed the government of Niger's first president, Hamani Diori. He ruled the country as military head of state from 17 April 1 ...
.Jibrin Ibrahim and Abdoulayi Niandou Souley
"The rise to power of an opposition party: the MNSD in Niger Republic"
''Politeia'', volume 15, number 3, Unisa Press, 1996.
Myriam Gervais, "Niger: Regime Change, Economic Crisis, and Perpetuation of Privilege", in ''Political Reform in Francophone Africa'' (1997), ed. John F. Clark and David E. Gardinier, pages 100–104. At a party congress in March 1991, Saibou retained his position as President of the MNSD, but at another congress held in November 1991, Tandja was elected as MNSD President, while
Hama Amadou Hama Amadou (born 1949) is a Nigerien politician who was Prime Minister of Niger from 1995 to 1996 and again from 2000 to 2007. He was also Secretary-General of the National Movement for the Development of Society (MNSD-Nassara) from 1991 to 200 ...
was elected as its Secretary-General. Tandja's obtaining of the party leadership over Djermakoye marked a departure from the traditional dominance of the party by Djermakoye's Zarma (Djerma) ethnic group. Djermakoye split from the MNSD and formed his own party, the
Nigerien Alliance for Democracy and Progress The Nigerien Alliance for Democracy and Progress (french: Alliance nigérienne pour la démocratie et le progrès, ANDP-Zaman Lahiya) is a political party in Niger. Moumouni Adamou Djermakoye led the party from its foundation in 1992 until his ...
(ANDP). Tandja was the MNSD candidate in the 1993 presidential elections and was the leading candidate in the first round of voting with 34% of the vote. However, he was defeated in second round by the
Democratic and Social Convention The Democratic and Social Convention - Rahama (french: Convention démocratique et sociale-Rahama, CDS-Rahama) is a political party in Niger. History It was founded in January 1991. In the February 1993 parliamentary elections the party won 22 ...
(CDS) candidate
Mahamane Ousmane Mahamane Ousmane (born 20 January 1950), press release no. 179, is a Nigerien politician. He was the first democratically elected and fourth President of Niger, serving from 16 April 1993, U.S. Department of State. until he was deposed in a mili ...
, who was backed by the Alliance of the Forces of Change (AFC), an alliance formed by the candidates who did not qualify for the second round. Although the MNSD won 29 seats in the 1993 parliamentary elections, emerging as the largest party, it went into opposition after the elections because the AFC parties held a majority of seats. However, early parliamentary elections were held in 1995, which saw the MNSD remain the largest party with 29 seats and successfully form an alliance with the
Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism The Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism (french: Parti Nigerien pour la Democratie et le Socialisme, PNDS-Tarayya) is a political party in Niger. It is a broadly left-leaning party, part of the Socialist International, and since 2011 it h ...
(PNDS), which had previously been hostile to the MNSD, and smaller parties.
Hama Amadou Hama Amadou (born 1949) is a Nigerien politician who was Prime Minister of Niger from 1995 to 1996 and again from 2000 to 2007. He was also Secretary-General of the National Movement for the Development of Society (MNSD-Nassara) from 1991 to 200 ...
of the MNSD then became Prime Minister, in
cohabitation Cohabitation is an arrangement where people who are not married, usually couples, live together. They are often involved in a romantic or sexually intimate relationship on a long-term or permanent basis. Such arrangements have become increas ...
with President Ousmane. The cohabitation was marked by sharp rivalry between Amadou and Ousmane, and in January 1996 the military, led by
Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara General Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara (May 9, 1949 – April 9, 1999) was a military officer and diplomat in Niger who ruled the country from his seizure of power in 1996 until his assassination during the military coup of April 1999. Baré Maïn ...
, seized power in a coup. Tandja ran unsuccessfully again in the July 1996 presidential elections, finishing in third place with 15.65% of the vote, behind Maïnassara and Ousmane.Elections in Niger
''African Elections Database''.
Along with other opposition parties, grouped together as the Front for the Restoration and Defense of Democracy, the MNSD boycotted the November 1996 parliamentary elections. n Another coup in April 1999 led to
general elections A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
late in the year; the MNSD won the presidential election, with Tandja defeating
Mahamadou Issoufou Mahamadou Issoufou (born 1 January 1952) is a Nigerien politician who served as the President of Niger from 7 April 2011 to 2 April 2021. Issoufou was the prime minister of Niger from 1993 to 1994, president of the National Assembly from 1995 t ...
of the PNDS in the second round, taking 59.89% of the vote. ,
Organisation internationale de la Francophonie The (OIF; sometimes shortened to the Francophonie, french: La Francophonie , but also called International Organisation of in English-language context) is an international organization representing countries and regions where French is a ...
.
The MNSD again remained the largest party in the National Assembly, winning 38 out of the 83 seats, and in alliance with the CDS, gained a parliamentary majority, resulting in Amadou becoming Prime Minister again. With the parliamentary support of smaller parties, the party maintained a working majority in the National Assembly. As President, Tandja had to give up his position as party leader. Hamidou Sékou acted as interim leader,"Les partis politiques nigériens, leurs leaders respectifs et les pratiques politiques inavouables"
, ''La Roue de l'Histoire'', 24 February – 1 March 2004 .
until Hama Amadou, previously the party's secretary-general, was elected party president in December 2001.


21st century

In the 2004 general elections Tandja was re-elected to the presidency in the second round, defeating Issoufou,"Tandja wins second term as president in historic first for country"
IRIN, 8 December 2004.
with all the candidates knocked out in the first round backing Tandja. The MNSD won 47 of the 113 seats in an enlarged National Assembly. Amadou remained Prime Minister, but his government was defeated in a no-confidence vote on 31 May 2007, and in early June Tandja appointed
Seyni Oumarou Seyni Oumarou (born 9 August 1951
as Amadou's successor. Amadou was arrested for alleged embezzlement in June 2008. Serious tensions between supporters of Amadou, the MNSD President, and Tandja, the President of the Republic, subsequently developed, and supporters of the two sides traded accusations. Despite a split in the party, jailed former prime minister Hama Amadou retained the Presidency of the MNSD with his supporter
Habi Mahamadou Salissou Habi Mahamadou Salissou is a Nigerien politician and a former Secretary-General of the centre-right National Movement for the Development of Society (MNSD). He served in the government of Niger as Minister of Secondary and Higher Education from 2001 ...
as its Secretary-General. However, he was stripped of the formal leadership of the ruling party in early 2009; a special congress held in
Zinder Zinder (locally, ''Damagaram''), formerly also spelled Sinder, is the third largest city in Niger, with a population of 170,574 (2001 census);
on 21 February replaced him with his successor as Prime Minister, Oumarou. Minister of Interior
Albadé Abouba Albadé Abouba is a Nigerien politician who has been the Secretary-General of the National Movement for the Development of Society (MNSD-Nassara) since 2009. He served in the government of Niger as Minister of the Interior from 2002 to 2004 and a ...
was elected as Secretary General of the party. This result came despite months of wrangling between pro-Tandja and pro-Amadou elements in the party that threatened to split the MNSD and saw pro-Amadou groups join opposition protests against a floated plan to extend Tandja's term past the 2009 elections. On 26 April 2009, the party's political bureau decided to expel eight party members, including five deputies to the National Assembly, for "indiscipline": deputies Soumana Sanda, Issaka Hassane Djégoulé,
Amadou Soumana Amadou is a spongy material derived from ''Fomes fomentarius'' and similar fungi that grow on the bark of coniferous and angiosperm trees, and have the appearance of a horse's hoof (thus the name "hoof fungus"). It is also known as the "tinder f ...
("Belko"), Hadiza Moussa Gros and Seydou Tahirou Mayaki, as well as three party members Seyni Mounkaïla, Ladan Tchana and former Political Bureau member Oumarou Dogari. All were supporters of Hama Amadou. According to Soumana Sanda, this was because of their support for the former prime minister. On 14 May, the National Assembly admitted five replacement deputies, chosen by the ruling party:
Abdoulaye Koro Abdoulaye is a West African masculine given name and surname. It is equivalent to the Arabic names Abdallah or Abdullah ( ar, عبد الله ''ʿAbdu-llahi''; ''servant of God''), given name of Muhammad's father. People with this name include: Gi ...
, Abdoulaye Morou, Soumana Kangaye, Amadou Saidou, and
Amina Ali Aminatu (also Amina; died 1610) was a Hausa people, Hausa Muslim historical figure in the Hausa Kingdoms, city-state Zazzau (now city of Zaria in Kaduna State), in what is now in the north-west region of Nigeria. She might have ruled in the mid- ...
.
Parliamentary elections A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
were held in October 2009; presidential elections were postponed following a controversial
referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
that extended Tandja's term in office. With the elections boycotted by several opposition parties, the MNSD won an absolute majority, taking 76 of the 113 seats. However, a coup the following year removed Tandja from office and
general elections A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
were held in 2011. Oumarou was the MNSD's presidential candidate, finishing second in the first round of voting and losing to Issoufou of the PNDS in the second. The MNSD became the second-largest party in the National Assembly behind the PNSD, winning 25 seats. In the 2016 general elections Oumarou contested the presidency again, this time finishing third with 12% of the vote. The party subsequently participated in an opposition boycott of the second round as Issoufou was re-elected. In the National Assembly elections, the MNSD lost five seats as it was pushed into third place by the PNDS and MODEN/FA. A few months after Issoufou's re-election, Oumarou announced in August 2016 that the MNSD was joining the "presidential majority" coalition of parties supporting Issoufou. That move was followed by the MNSD's inclusion in the government and the appointment of Oumarou as High Representative of President Issoufou in October 2016.Mathieu Olivier
"Niger : Seini Oumarou nommé Haut représentant du chef de l’État"
''Jeune Afrique'', 21 October 2016 .


Electoral history


Presidential elections


National Assembly elections


References


External links


Official website
{{Authority control Political parties in Niger Parties of one-party systems 1989 establishments in Niger Political parties established in 1989 Conservative parties in Africa