Burkina Faso has had seven presidents since independence from France in 1960. These presidents led the country under different political systems.
However, the country was first called Upper Volta before changing its name to Burkina Faso in 1984. The current president is Captain Ibrahim Traoré, who took power in a military coup on September 30, 2022.
Burkina Faso has seen several changes in leadership, including transitions between military and civilian governments.
Along with the regular presidents, the country has had a few interim and acting presidents during times of instability.
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Complete List Of Burkina Faso Presidents Since 1960 Till Date
No | Name | Tenure | Political Party |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Maurice Yaméogo | 5 August 1960 – 3 January 1966 | UDV–RDA |
2 | Sangoulé Lamizana | 3 January 1966 – 25 November 1980 | Military / Independent |
3 | Saye Zerbo | 25 November 1980 – 7 November 1982 | Military |
4 | Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo | 9 November 1982 – 4 August 1983 | Military |
5 | Thomas Sankara | 4 August 1983 – 4 August 1984 | Military |
Thomas Sankara | 4 August 1984 – 15 October 1987 | Military |
|
6 | Blaise Compaoré | 15 October 1987 – 31 October 2014 | Military / FP ODP–MT / CDP |
Honoré Traoré | 31 October 2014 – 1 November 2014 | Military |
|
Yacouba Isaac Zida | 1 November 2014 – 18 November 2014 | Military (RSP) |
|
Michel Kafando | 18 November 2014 – 17 September 2015 | Independent |
|
Gilbert Diendéré | 17 September 2015 – 23 September 2015 | Military (RSP) |
|
Chérif Sy | 17 September 2015 –23 September2015 | Independent |
|
Michel Kafando | 23 September2015 –29 December2015 | Independent |
|
7 | Roch Marc Christian Kaboré | 29 December2015 –24 January2022 | MPP |
Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba | 24 January2022 –30 September2022 | Military |
|
Ibrahim Traoré | 30 September2022 – Incumbent | Military |
Who Was The First President Of Burkina Faso?
Maurice Yaméogo was the first president of Burkina Faso, which was known as Upper Volta at the time. He became president after the country gained independence from France in 1960.
Maurice Yaméogo was born on December 31, 1921, in Koudougou, a town in Upper Volta. His birth name was Naoua Laguemba, meaning “he comes to unite us” in the Mossi language.
He grew up in the Mossi ethnic group and was baptized as a Catholic after a lightning strike in 1929, which led him to adopt the name Maurice.
Yaméogo attended school in his village before moving to Pabre High School in the capital city, Ouagadougou. After finishing his studies, he worked as a shipping clerk and later joined the French colonial civil service in Ivory Coast.
His interest in politics grew in the late 1940s, and he became more involved in local politics. In 1948, he was elected to the territorial assembly of Upper Volta. By 1957, his party, the Voltaic Democratic Union (UDV), won the elections, and he became the Minister of Interior.
In 1958, after the death of President Oezzin Coulibaly, Yaméogo became the acting head of government. A year later, on December 11, 1959, he was elected president without any opposition.
After Upper Volta gained independence on August 5, 1960, Yaméogo became the new nation’s first president. During his presidency, Yaméogo strengthened the government but faced many challenges.
He took control of the country and limited the power of opposition groups. Economic difficulties, including a growing national debt and protests over his government’s austerity measures, caused problems for Yaméogo.
In 1966, amid growing protests and unrest, he declared a state of emergency but eventually handed over power to the military.
After being removed from office, Yaméogo spent some time under house arrest but was released in 1970. He continued to stay involved in politics but never regained the presidency.
He lived in Ivory Coast for the last years of his life, where he passed away on September 15, 1993, while on a flight back to Burkina Faso for medical treatment.
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President Of Burkina Faso 1987
Blaise Compaoré became the President of Burkina Faso in 1987 after a military coup. He was born in 1951 in Ouagadougou, the country’s capital, then known as Upper Volta.
In the early 1980s, he became close to Thomas Sankara, who led a revolution in 1983. Compaoré served as one of Sankara’s top officials, holding positions like Minister of State at the presidency and Minister of Justice.
However, their relationship began to sour due to disagreements over the country’s direction. In 1987, Compaoré led a coup that overthrew Sankara and led to his assassination.
The exact reasons for the coup are unclear, but it is believed that tensions over security and economic policies were behind it. Sankara was shot during a meeting, and after the coup, Compaoré took power.
For the first few years, he ruled with two other military leaders, but by 1989, he removed them and had them executed.
Compaoré officially became the president in 1991 after adopting a new constitution that allowed for multiparty elections.
He was elected president that same year, but the election was boycotted by opposition parties who protested against his refusal to hold a national conference on political reform.
He won several elections in the years that followed, but his presidency was seen by allegations of electoral fraud and human rights abuses.
During his time as president, Compaoré focused on economic reforms, bringing foreign investment into the country. However, his rule was also criticized for restricting political freedoms and suppressing opposition.
Despite these issues, Burkina Faso remained more stable under his leadership than some of its neighboring countries.
Compaoré’s role in the assassination of Sankara remained a topic of controversy for many years. In 2022, a military court found him guilty of involvement in Sankara’s death and sentenced him to life in prison in absentia.
After being removed in 2014 following protests against his attempt to extend his presidency, Compaoré went into exile in Côte d’Ivoire.
In 2022, he publicly apologized for his actions and asked for forgiveness from the people of Burkina Faso and Sankara’s family.
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Who Is The Current President Of Burkina Faso?
Ibrahim Traoré is the current interim president of Burkina Faso. He became president on September 30, 2022, after leading a military coup that removed the previous president, Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba.
Traoré, who was 34 years old at the time, became the world’s youngest head of state. Born in 1988, Ibrahim Traoré is a captain in the Burkinabé army.
His rise to power came during a time of great instability in Burkina Faso. The country had been struggling with a violent insurgency from armed groups, and many people were unhappy with the government’s handling of the situation.
This led to two coups in 2022. The first coup, in January, brought Damiba to power, but his government failed to deal effectively with the violence, leading to Traoré’s coup in September.
After taking power, Traoré promised to improve security in Burkina Faso. In his speech after the coup, he criticized Damiba’s government for not doing enough to protect the country from the growing threat of armed groups linked to al-Qaeda and ISIS.
Traoré also promised to make reforms to address the political and security issues that the country faced. Traoré holds the roles of Head of State and Supreme Commander of the National Armed Forces.
He leads the Patriotic Movement for Safeguarding and Restoration (MPSR), the group that took control after the coup.
While some people in Burkina Faso see Traoré as a symbol of hope and a leader who can bring change, others are concerned about the impact of military rule.