Ahmed Laaouej, the president of Brussels PS, was sworn in as Minister of Social Action and Solidarity at the age of 56 after reaching an agreement with six coalition parties.
He will oversee Social Action, Equal Opportunities, and Local Government, while also handling Social Cohesion, Culture, Social Action, and International Relations within the French Community Commission.
The lengthy political deadlock in Brussels was partly due to Laaouej’s opposition to allowing N-VA into the regional government.
Laaouej, a specialist in Finance and Budget, is known for his strong debating skills. He shares a similar background with PS leader Elio Di Rupo, as both are sons of immigrant mineworkers. Coming from a family of six children, he was born to Moroccan parents who originally migrated to the Liège region.
Laaouej studied law at the University of Liège and began his career at the Ministry of Finance in 1993. He first connected with PS through the socialist civil service union ACOD and later worked for the party’s research institute, Institut Emile Vandervelde, focusing on finance and public administration.
In 2004, he served as chief of staff to Claude Eerdekens, then Minister of Civil Service and Sports in the French Community, before returning to PS’s research institute in 2007 and taking part in crucial government negotiations, including the sixth state reform.
He moved to Brussels and joined the municipal council of Koekelberg in 2006, serving as mayor there for twelve years. Laaouej entered federal politics in 2010 as a senator and later became an MP in 2014, standing out for his expertise in fiscal matters. He chaired the special committee on the Panama Papers scandal in 2016 and succeeded Laurette Onkelinx as PS parliamentary group leader in 2017.
In October 2019, Laaouej narrowly won the leadership of the Brussels PS federation, defeating Rachid Madrane with 52.5% of the vote.
Despite leading the PS’s list in June 2024, he was unable to prevent the liberal MR party from winning the Brussels elections after 20 years in opposition. The PS finished second, just ahead of the far-left PVDA.
During the prolonged Brussels government negotiations, Laaouej took a key role on the left opposing MR’s efforts to form the most right-leaning majority possible. Yet even he ultimately failed to form a government.
