“We aspire to build a sovereign economy and ensure transparent management of our natural resources,” Touadéra said at the swearing-in ceremony in Bangui, attended by the presidents of Congo-Brazzaville and Comoros.
Opposition parties and civil society rejected the results of the election, which the Constitutional Council said that Touadéra won with 77.9% of the vote.
"You have to be a fool to believe that,” said Frédéric Godoba, a civil society activist.
Conflict has broken out in the country since 2013 after mostly Muslim rebels seized power and forced then President François Bozizé to quit. The conflict was de-escalated by a 2019 peace deal between the government and 14 armed groups. Six of the 14 groups later withdrew from the agreement.
The Central African Republic is one of the countries where Wagner, a Russian mercenary group, was first active in Africa.