List of presidents of Burundi

The President of Burundi is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Burundi. The president is also commander-in-chief of the National Defence Force. The office of the presidency was established when Michel Micombero declared Burundi a republic on 28 November 1966.^[3] The first constitution to specify the powers and duties of the president was the constitution of 1974, which was adopted in 1976.^[4] Written by Micombero, the constitution affirmed his position as the first president of Burundi.^[2] The powers of the president derive from the latest constitution, implemented in 2005 as a result of the 2000 Arusha Accords after the Burundian Civil War.^[4]

President of Burundi
Abakuru W'igihugu ca Uburundi (Kirundi) Président du Burundi (French) Rais wa Jamhuri ya Burundi (Swahili)
Coat of arms of Burundi
Incumbent Évariste Ndayishimiye since 18 June 2020
Term length	7 years,[1] limited to two terms.[2]
Inaugural holder	Michel Micombero
Formation	28 November 1966
Deputy	Vice-President of Burundi
Website	Official Website

The president's stated role is to represent Burundi's national unity and ensure that the laws and functions of the state are created and executed with full compliance of the constitution. The president has the power to appoint military commanders, ambassadors, magistrates and provincial governors. The president also appoints all judges, including those of the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court. The president can organize government and can call for parliamentary sessions under extraordinary circumstances. In addition to promulgating legislation, the president has the power to propose and amend laws, and can veto laws passed by the parliament. A presidential term is seven years,^[1] and presidents can serve a maximum of two terms.^[5][a] The president is entitled to a pension after the end of their final term of office.^[2]

Nine people have served in the office since Burundi became a republic. Only one president, Pierre Buyoya, has served on two non-consecutive occasions.^[7] Sylvie Kinigi was the first and only woman who has served in the role (on an interim basis).^[8] The current president, Évariste Ndayishimiye, has been serving in the role since 18 June 2020.

List of officeholders

Political parties

  Union for National Progress (UPRONA)

  Front for Democracy in Burundi (FRODEBU)

  National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD–FDD)

Status

  Denotes acting president

Symbols

^† Died in office

List of presidents of Burundi^[9]

No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Elected	Term of office			Ethnic group	Political party		Prime minister(s)	Ref.
				Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Michel Micombero (1940–1983)	—	28 November 1966	1 November 1976 (Deposed in coup)	9 years, 339 days	Tutsi		UPRONA / Military	Nyamoya	[10]
2		Jean-Baptiste Bagaza (1946–2016) [b]	1984	1 November 1976	3 September 1987 (Deposed in coup)	10 years, 306 days	Tutsi		UPRONA / Military	Nzambimana	[11]
3		Pierre Buyoya (1949–2020) [c]	—	3 September 1987	10 July 1993	5 years, 310 days	Tutsi		UPRONA / Military	Sibomana	[12]
4		Melchior Ndadaye (1953–1993)	1993	10 July 1993	21 October 1993 (Assassinated)	103 days	Hutu		FRODEBU	Kinigi	[13]
—		François Ngeze (born 1953) [d]	—	21 October 1993	27 October 1993	6 days	Hutu		UPRONA / Military	—	[13]
—		Sylvie Kinigi (born 1953) [e]	—	27 October 1993	5 February 1994	101 days	Tutsi		UPRONA	Herself	[15]
5		Cyprien Ntaryamira (1955–1994)	1994	5 February 1994	6 April 1994 (Assassinated)	60 days	Hutu		FRODEBU	Kinigi Kanyenkiko	[16]
6		Sylvestre Ntibantunganya (born 1956)	—	6 April 1994	1 October 1994	2 years, 110 days	Hutu		FRODEBU	Kanyenkiko Nduwayo	[13]
			1994	1 October 1994	25 July 1996 (Deposed in coup)
(3)		Pierre Buyoya (1949–2020)	—	25 July 1996	11 June 1998	6 years, 279 days	Tutsi		UPRONA	Ndimira	[12]
				11 June 1998	30 April 2003					Position abolished
7		Domitien Ndayizeye (born 1951)	—	30 April 2003	26 August 2005	2 years, 118 days	Hutu		FRODEBU		[17]
8		Pierre Nkurunziza (1964–2020)	2005 2010 2015	26 August 2005	8 June 2020[†]	14 years, 287 days	Hutu		CNDD–FDD		[18][19]
9		Évariste Ndayishimiye (born 1968)	2020	18 June 2020	Incumbent	4 years, 156 days	Hutu		CNDD–FDD	Bunyoni Ndirakobuca	[20]

Timeline

See also

• Burundi portal

• Politics of Burundi
• List of kings of Burundi
• List of colonial governors of Ruanda-Urundi
• List of colonial residents of Burundi

Notes

1. Pierre Nkurunziza was elected for a third term, as the Constitutional Court considered that his first, indirectly elected term, did not count towards the limit.^[6]
2. Styled as Chairman of the Supreme Revolutionary Council until 10 November 1976.
3. Styled as Chairman of the Military Committee of National Salvation until 9 September 1987.
4. Styled as Chairman of the Committee of Public Salvation; in rebellion.
5. On 8 November 1993 the Constitutional Court ruled that "the government acting collegially" assumed the responsibilities of the interim presidency until a new president could be elected.^[14]

References

1. Moore, Jina (18 May 2018). "Burundi Voters Back Constitution Extending Presidential Term". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 12 June 2024. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
2. "Burundi's Constitution of 2005" (PDF). Comparative Constitutions Project. 2005. pp. 17, 20. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 February 2015. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
3. "Michel Micombero, 43, dies; Former president of Burundi". The New York Times. UPI. 18 July 1983. Section B., p. 5. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
4. Manirakiza, Pacifique. "The 2005 Constitution of Burundi" (PDF). University of Ottawa. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 September 2019. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
5. Vandeginste, Stef (2016). "Legal Loopholes and the Politics of Executive Term Limits: Insights from Burundi". Africa Spectrum. 51 (2): 39–63. doi:10.1177/000203971605100203. hdl:10067/1355460151162165141. Archived from the original on 19 November 2020. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
6. "Burundi court 'forced' to validate leader's third term". Al Jazeera Media Network. 14 May 2015. Archived from the original on 12 June 2024. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
7. "Biographie de Pierre Buyoya" [Biography of Pierre Buyoya]. Le Monde (in French). 18 April 2001. Archived from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
8. "Meet the women who became presidents in Africa". Africa Feeds Media Limited. 20 March 2021. Archived from the original on 20 March 2022. Retrieved 18 July 2024. Kinigi ... served as Prime Minister of Burundi... She also served as acting President ... the first and to date only woman to hold these positions in Burundi.
9. Tom Lansford, ed. (31 May 2021). Political Handbook of the World 2020-2021. CQ Press. pp. 240–242. ISBN 9781544384733.
10. "Necrológicas - Michel Micombero, ex presidente de Burundi" [Obituary - Michel Micombero, former president of Burundi]. El País (in Spanish). 18 July 1983. Archived from the original on 12 July 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
11. Emily Langer (5 May 2016). "Jean-Baptiste Bagaza, ousted Burundian president, dies at 69". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
12. "Pierre Buyoya, Burundian president who led two coups, dies at 71". The Washington Post. 18 December 2020. Archived from the original on 13 July 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
13. "Burundi profile - Timeline". British Broadcasting Corporation. 4 November 2022. Archived from the original on 12 July 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
14. La Cour constitutionnelle de la République du Burundi siegeant en matiere de constatation de la vacance du poste de Président de la République a rendu l'arret suivant [Constitutional Court of the Republic of Burundi sitting on the matter of establishing the vacancy of the post of President of the Republic has rendered the following judgment] (in French), Constitutional Court of Burundi, 8 November 1993, archived from the original on 7 March 2022, retrieved 22 September 2021 – via Great Lakes of Africa Centre
15. Farida Jalalzai (2004). "Women Political Leaders - Past and Present". Women & Politics. 26 (3–4): 85–108. doi:10.1300/J014v26n03_04. Archived from the original on 12 July 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
16. Anver Versi (7 April 1994). "Obituary: Cyprien Ntaryamira". The Independent. Archived from the original on 13 June 2024. Retrieved 17 July 2024. President of Burundi 1994; ... died Kigali, Rwanda 6 April 1994
17. "Burundi's former leader arrested". British Broadcasting Corporation. 21 August 2006. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
18. "Outgoing Burundian president Pierre Nkurunziza dies". National Post. Reuters. 9 June 2020. Archived from the original on 10 July 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
19. Hamza Mohamed (10 June 2020). "Obituary: Burundi's President Pierre Nkurunziza". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 17 July 2024. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
20. "Burundi: la Cour constitutionnelle ordonne l'intronisation du président élu" [Burundi: the Constitutional Court orders the inauguration of the elected president] (in French). Radio France Internationale. 12 June 2020. Archived from the original on 24 June 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.