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His nomination follows the swearing in last week of Kabore, Burkina Faso’s first new leader in almost three decades who has pledged to “reform institutions and modernise the government for more social justice, democracy and freedom.”
Kabore takes over from an interim administration that followed a popular insurrection in October 2014 that toppled Blaise Compaore, who had been in power since 1987.
Thieba has a finance and banking doctorate and leaves an administrator’s job in the West African Economic and Monetary Union, one of two regional bodies co-ordinating economic activity in nations sharing the CFA franc, which was historically pegged to the French currency.
The new premier has also held several posts in the Central Bank of West African States.
Kabore, who was elected with more than 53% of the votes in a presidential poll held in late November, also has an economic background, but turned to politics from a banking career in the 1990s.
In January 2014, he went into outspoken opposition against Compaore and played a role in the “Citizen’s Broom” movement that brought down the regime, to become the first democratically elected civilian leader of the country.
