Cheikh Tidiane Gadio is a Senegal

Senegal

Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...

ese diplomat who served in the government of Senegal as Minister of Foreign Affairs

Foreign minister

A Minister of Foreign Affairs, or foreign minister, is a cabinet minister who helps form the foreign policy of a sovereign state. The foreign minister is often regarded as the most senior ministerial position below that of the head of government . It is often granted to the deputy prime minister in...

 from April 2000 to October 2009.

Diplomatic and political career

Gadio was appointed as Minister of Foreign Affairs when Abdoulaye Wade

Abdoulaye Wade

Abdoulaye Wade is the third and current President of Senegal, in office since 2000. He is also the Secretary-General of the Senegalese Democratic Party and has led the party since it was founded in 1974...

 took office as President in April 2000. He was promoted to the rank of Minister of State, while retaining the foreign affairs portfolio, in November 2002.

At the African Union

African Union

The African Union is a union consisting of 54 African states. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established on 9 July 2002, the AU was formed as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity...

 summit in Accra

Accra

Accra is the capital and largest city of Ghana, with an urban population of 1,658,937 according to the 2000 census. Accra is also the capital of the Greater Accra Region and of the Accra Metropolitan District, with which it is coterminous...

, Ghana

Ghana

Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...

 in early July 2007, where leaders discussed whether a United States of Africa

United States of Africa

The United States of Africa is a proposed name for the concept of a federation of some or all of the 55 sovereign states of Africa.Former Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi, who was the 2009 Chairperson of the African Union , advanced the idea of a United States of Africa at two regional African...

 should be created immediately or gradually, Gadio expressed Senegal's stance in favor of immediate creation, saying that "We are ready to abandon partially or totally our sovereignty to join a unity government in Africa." He mentioned the possibility that Senegal could join a smaller union of willing states if the rest of Africa was not ready.

As Foreign Minister, Gadio played a prominent role in African diplomacy, and President Wade praised him as "the best foreign minister in Africa". After more than nine years as Foreign Minister, Gadio was replaced by Madické Niang in the government named on 1 October 2009. No reason was given, although in the Senegalese press it was reported that Gadio had a poor relationship with Karim Wade

Karim Wade

Karim Wade is a Senegalese politician who has served in the government of Senegal as Minister of State for International Cooperation, Regional Development, Air Transport, and Infrastructure since May 2009. He is the son of Abdoulaye Wade, the President of Senegal...

, the President's son, who also served in the government as Minister of State for International Cooperation, Infrastructure, Air Transport, and Public Works.

A few months after his dismissal, Gadio emerged as a critic and opponent of President Wade, launching a new political movement, the Citizen Political Movement (Mouvement politique citoyen, MPC), in May 2010. While sharply criticizing Wade, Gadio reaffirmed his support for pan-Africanism

Pan-Africanism

Pan-Africanism is a movement that seeks to unify African people or people living in Africa, into a "one African community". Differing types of Pan-Africanism seek different levels of economic, racial, social, or political unity...

 in his movement's manifesto and expressed his hope for an "African Renaissance

African Renaissance

The African Renaissance is the concept that African people and nations overcome the current challenges confronting the continent and achieve cultural, scientific, economic, etc. renewal. This concept has been popularized by South African President Thabo Mbeki during his term of office...

" in the 21st century. He vowed to combat efforts to eliminate the second round of presidential elections in Senegal; the proposal to reduce elections to a single round was perceived as a change that would work to Wade's benefit.