List of presidents of Burundi
{{Short description|None}}
{{Featured list}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{Infobox official post
| post = President
| body = Burundi
| native_name = {{nativename|rn|Abakuru W'igihugu ca Uburundi}}
{{nativename|fr|Président du Burundi}}
{{nativename|sw|Rais wa Jamhuri ya Burundi}}
| insignia = Coat of arms of Burundi.svg
| insigniasize =
| insigniacaption = Coat of arms of Burundi
| flag =
| flagsize = 125
| flagborder = yes
| flagcaption = Presidential Standard
| image = Évariste Ndayishimiye (3x4 farther cropped).jpg
| imagesize = 200px
| alt = Évariste Ndayishimiye in 2022
| imagecaption =
| incumbent = Évariste Ndayishimiye
| acting =
| incumbentsince = 18 June 2020
| department =
| style = Mr President
{{small|(informal)}}
His Excellency
{{small|(diplomatic)}}
| type = Head of state
Executive president
| status =
| abbreviation =
| member_of =
| reports_to =
| residence =
| seat = Bujumbura
| nominator =
| appointer = Popular vote
| appointer_qualified =
| termlength_qualified = renewable once
| constituting_instrument = Constitution of Burundi (2005)
| precursor =
| formation = {{start date and age|df=y|1966|11|28}}
| first = Michel Micombero
| last =
| abolished =
| succession =
| unofficial_names =
| deputy = Vice-President of Burundi
| salary =
| website = [http://www.presidence.gov.bi/ Official Website]
}}
{{Politics 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.{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/07/18/obituaries/michel-micombero-43-dies-former-president-of-burundi.html |title=Michel Micombero, 43, dies; Former president of Burundi |newspaper=The New York Times |date=18 July 1983 |agency=UPI |at=Section B., p. 5 |access-date= 10 July 2024 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230603043412/https://www.nytimes.com/1983/07/18/obituaries/michel-micombero-43-dies-former-president-of-burundi.html |archive-date=3 June 2023}} The first constitution to specify the powers and duties of the president was the constitution of 1974, which was adopted in 1976. Written by Micombero, the constitution affirmed his position as the first president of Burundi. 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.{{Cite web |last=Manirakiza |first=Pacifique |title=The 2005 Constitution of Burundi |url=http://www.icla.up.ac.za/images/country_reports/burundi_country_report.pdf |publisher=University of Ottawa |url-status=dead |access-date=28 April 2019 |archive-date=4 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190904160047/http://www.icla.up.ac.za/images/country_reports/burundi_country_report.pdf}}{{update after|2025}}
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,{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/18/world/africa/burundi-constitution-referendum.html |title=Burundi Voters Back Constitution Extending Presidential Term |last=Moore |first=Jina |date=2018-05-18 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=2019-04-26 |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=12 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240612041149/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/18/world/africa/burundi-constitution-referendum.html |url-status=live}} and presidents can serve a maximum of two terms.{{cite journal |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/000203971605100203 |title=Legal Loopholes and the Politics of Executive Term Limits: Insights from Burundi |author=Vandeginste, Stef |year=2016 |journal=Africa Spectrum |volume=51 |issue=2 |pages=39–63 |doi=10.1177/000203971605100203 |access-date=10 July 2024 |archive-date=19 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119113028/https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/000203971605100203 |url-status=live |hdl=10067/1355460151162165141 |hdl-access=free }}{{efn|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.{{cite web |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/5/14/burundi-court-forced-to-validate-leaders-third-term |title=Burundi court 'forced' to validate leader's third term |date=14 May 2015 |publisher=Al Jazeera Media Network |access-date=10 July 2024 |archive-date=12 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240612020928/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/5/14/burundi-court-forced-to-validate-leaders-third-term |url-status=live }}}} The president is entitled to a pension after the end of their final term of office.{{Cite web |date=2005 |title=Burundi's Constitution of 2005 |url=https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Burundi_2005.pdf |publisher=Comparative Constitutions Project |access-date=1 July 2024 |pages=17, 20 |archive-date=20 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150220125821/https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Burundi_2005.pdf |url-status=live}}
Nine people have served in the office since Burundi became a republic. Only one president, Pierre Buyoya, has served on two non-consecutive occasions.{{cite news |title=Biographie de Pierre Buyoya |url=https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/2001/04/18/biographie-de-pierre-buyoya_174487_1819218.html |access-date=18 July 2024 |newspaper=Le Monde |date=18 April 2001 |language=fr |trans-title=Biography of Pierre Buyoya |url-status=live |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403223924/https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/2001/04/18/biographie-de-pierre-buyoya_174487_1819218.html |archive-date=3 April 2023}} Sylvie Kinigi was the first and only woman who has served in the role (on an interim basis).{{cite web |url=https://africafeeds.com/2021/03/20/meet-the-women-who-became-presidents-in-africa/ |title=Meet the women who became presidents in Africa |date=20 March 2021 |publisher=Africa Feeds Media Limited |access-date= 18 July 2024 |quote=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. |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220320020431/https://africafeeds.com/2021/03/20/meet-the-women-who-became-presidents-in-africa/ |archive-date=20 March 2022}} The current president, Évariste Ndayishimiye, has been serving in the role since 18 June 2020.
List of officeholders
;Political parties
{{legend|{{party color|Union for National Progress}}|Union for National Progress (UPRONA)|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}
{{legend|{{party color|Front for Democracy in Burundi}}|Front for Democracy in Burundi (FRODEBU)|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}
{{legend|{{party color|National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy}}|National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD–FDD)|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}
;Status
{{legend|#E6E6AA|text={{Double dagger|alt=Indicates a temporary assignment}}|Denotes acting president|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}
;Symbols
{{note label|†|†|†}} Died in office
Timeline
{{#tag:timeline|
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id:uprona value:rgb(1,0,0) legend:UPRONA
id:frodebu value:rgb(0.12,0.71,0.23) legend:FRODEBU
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bar:Micombero
bar:Bagaza
bar:Buyoya
bar:Ndadaye
bar:Ngeze
bar:Kinigi
bar:Ntaryamira
bar:Ntibantunganya
bar:Ndayizeye
bar:Nkurunziza
bar:Ndayishimiye
PlotData =
width:5 align:left fontsize:9 shift:(5,-4) anchor:till
bar:Micombero
from: 28/11/1966 till: 01/11/1976 color:uprona text:"Michel Micombero"
bar:Bagaza
from: 01/11/1976 till: 03/09/1987 color:uprona text:"Jean-Baptiste Bagaza"
bar:Buyoya
from: 03/09/1987 till: 10/07/1993 color:uprona
from: 25/07/1996 till: 30/04/2003 color:uprona text:"Pierre Buyoya"
bar:Ndadaye
from: 10/07/1993 till: 21/10/1993 color:frodebu text:"Melchior Ndadaye"
bar:Ngeze
from: 21/10/1993 till: 27/10/1993 color:uprona text:"François Ngeze (acting)"
bar:Kinigi
from: 27/10/1993 till: 05/02/1994 color:uprona text:"Sylvie Kinigi (acting)"
bar:Ntaryamira
from: 05/02/1994 till: 06/04/1994 color:frodebu text:"Cyprien Ntaryamira"
bar:Ntibantunganya
from: 06/04/1994 till: 25/07/1996 color:frodebu text:"Sylvestre Ntibantunganya"
bar:Ndayizeye
from: 30/04/2003 till: 26/08/2005 color:frodebu text:"Domitien Ndayizeye"
bar:Nkurunziza
from: 26/08/2005 till: 08/06/2020 color:cndd-fdd text:"Pierre Nkurunziza"
bar:Ndayishimiye
from: 18/06/2020 till: $today color:cndd-fdd text:"Évariste Ndayishimiye"
}}
See also
Notes
{{notelist}}