Colonel Michael Randrianirina, who seized power in the wake of the youth-led protests against persistent water and power shortages, fired his prime minister and cabinet on March 9 without explanation.

The career military officer tapped Mamitiana Rajaonarison, a former police officer who has led Madagascar's anti-money-laundering body since 2021, as his replacement head of government on March 15.

Since then, both men have been working to recruit for the new government -- with all prospective cabinet members forced to submit to a lie detector test.

In the new line-up unveiled by the colonel's office on Wednesday, 17 had been re-appointed to their posts, including to the key interior, economy and justice briefs.

Among the newcomers, Alice N'Diaye, a former head of the Indian Ocean Commission, is taking over the foreign ministry, while Radonirina Lucas Rabearimanga, from Madagascar's Office of Hydrocarbons, will become energy minister.

"The appointment of ministers was based on the use of new technologies to highlight their integrity," Randrianirina said in his speech on Wednesday.

"I will be relentless: if one case of corruption is reported in a ministry, the minister will be removed from office immediately," he warned.

The colonel has rejected accusations he led a coup, insisting that the Constitutional Court transferred power to him from ex-president Andry Rajoelina, who fled the island in the wake of the protests with France's help in October.

He has pledged to hand power back to civilians within two years. According to a transition roadmap published at the end of February, Madagascar is set to undergo extensive national consultations in 2026 and the drafting of a new constitution before a presidential election at the end of 2027.