The day's mantra among citizens and new lawmakers is "a break from the past” -- a past in which parliament was seen as serving the political elite rather than the people.

The new national assembly takes office about four months into the administration of President Macky Sall, who came to office vowing greater decentralization of power. Last week, President Sall, whose Bokk Yakaar coalition won 119 of 150 seats in an election earlier this month, said the Senegalese people's demands for better governance will require a "rigorous" parliament and effective collaboration between lawmakers and the executive.

The incoming assembly is the first since Senegal adopted a gender parity law designed to boost the number of female legislative candidates. Of its 150 elected representatives, 65 are women -- nearly twice the number of the outgoing parliament.

Civil society members say women tend to be well in tuned to their communities' needs and their presence is expected to improve the parliament's responsiveness to the people.

The newly elected lawmakers will serve five-year terms in parliament.

Maintaining stability

West African nations were relieved earlier this year when Senegal -- which has never seen a coup and is known for the relatively sound functioning of its democratic institutions -- got past a tumultuous election and completed another peaceful transition of power.

While the country's political stability is to be lauded, researchers with OSIWA and AfriMAP, both of which are funded by Open Society Foundations, say electoral and constitutional reforms are urgently needed to safeguard stability and improve citizen participation.

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