5 African countries currently ruled by military presidents (Photos)

1. Mali

Mali is a landlocked nation in West Africa. Bordered by Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Côte d’Ivoire on the south, and Guinea, and Mauritania on the west, Mali is one of the largest countries in the African continent.

Mali is currently ruled by Assimi Goïta.

Colonel Assimi Goïta is a 38-year-old Malian military officer who has been serving as interim President of Mali since last year. Goïta was the head of the National Committee for the Salvation of the People, a military junta that seized power from former Malian president, Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, in the 2020 Malian coup d’état. The son of an officer of the Malian Armed Forces, Goïta later took power from Bah Ndaw after the Malian coup d’état last year and has since been constitutionally declared Malian interim president.

2. Chad

Bordered by Central African Republic, Cameroon, and Nigeria, Chad is a landlocked nation located at the crossroads of North and Central Africa.

Mahamat ibn Idriss Déby Itno is a 38-year-old Chadian army general. The son of the late President of Chad, Idriss is presently serving as the chairman of the Transitional Military Council of Chad as the de facto President of Chad. He came to power last year when his father, Idriss Déby, passed away in action while commanding troops in the Northern Chad offensive.

3. Sudan

Sudan is a country in Northeast Africa. Bordered by Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, and Ethiopia, Sudan is the largest African country by area and the Arab League until the secession of South Sudan eleven years ago, since which both titles have been held by Algeria.

Sudan is currently ruled by General Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman al-Burhan.

General Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman al-Burhan is a 62-year-old Sudanese politician and Army general currently serving as the de facto head of state of Sudan as the Commander-In-Chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces after leading a coup d’état that deposed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok last year.

4. Guinea

Guinea is a West African country which borders Guinea-Bissau, Senegal, and Sierra Leone.

Guinea is presently governed by Mamady Doumbouya.

Mamady Doumbouya is a 42-year-old Guinean military officer presently serving as the interim president of Guinea since first October last year, after orchestrating a coup d’état that overthrew the previous president, Alpha Condé, the previous month.

5. Burkina Faso

A landlocked country in West Africa, Burkina Faso is currently ruled by Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba.

Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba is a 42-year-old Burkinabé military officer currently serving as the President of Burkina Faso, having ousted President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré in the 2022 Burkina Faso coup d’état. On January this year, the military junta restored the constitution and appointed Damiba as interim president.