Évariste Ndayishimiye facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Évariste Ndayishimiye
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Ndayishimiye in 2022
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| 10th President of Burundi | |
| Assumed office 18 June 2020 |
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| Prime Minister | Alain-Guillaume Bunyoni Gervais Ndirakobuca |
| Vice President | Prosper Bazombanza |
| Preceded by | Pierre Nkurunziza |
| First Vice Chairperson of the African Union | |
| Assumed office 15 February 2025 |
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| President | João Lourenço |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1968 (age 56–57) Giheta, Gitega Province, Burundi |
| Political party | CNDD–FDD |
| Spouse | Ndayubaha Angeline Ndayishimiye |
| Children | 6 |
| Signature |  |
Évariste Ndayishimiye (born in 1968) is a politician from Burundi. He has been the tenth President of Burundi since June 18, 2020.
He joined a group called the National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy (CNDD–FDD) during the Burundian Civil War. He became a leader in this group. After the war, he joined the Burundian Army. He also held several important government jobs under President Pierre Nkurunziza. President Nkurunziza supported Ndayishimiye to become the next president. Ndayishimiye won the 2020 elections with many votes.
About Évariste Ndayishimiye
Évariste Ndayishimiye was born in 1968 in Giheta, Gitega Province, Burundi. He is a devoted Catholic. He started studying law at the University of Burundi. In 1995, during the Burundian Civil War (1993–2005), he left his studies. He then joined the CNDD–FDD, a group that mostly included people from the Hutu ethnic group. He became a leader in this group during the war. People sometimes called him "Neva."
In 2003, the CNDD–FDD became a political party. Ndayishimiye became a high-ranking officer in the Burundian Army. In 2005, the CNDD–FDD party came to power. Pierre Nkurunziza became president. Ndayishimiye served as the Minister of the Interior and Public Security from 2006 to 2007. After that, he became President Nkurunziza's personal military helper until 2014. During this time, he also earned a degree from Wisdom University of Africa. He was also in charge of the Burundi National Olympic Committee for many years.
In 2018, President Nkurunziza said he would not run for president again in 2020. He chose Ndayishimiye to be the CNDD–FDD's candidate. Ndayishimiye was known as a close friend of Nkurunziza. Some people thought Nkurunziza wanted to still lead the country from behind the scenes. However, others believed Ndayishimiye was chosen because he was a good choice for the party. He was also seen as one of the most honest candidates in the CNDD–FDD.
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Ndayishimiye won the elections in May 2020. He received 68 percent of the votes. The elections happened during the COVID-19 pandemic in Burundi. President Nkurunziza passed away suddenly on June 8, 2020. Since Ndayishimiye had already won the elections, the Constitutional Court decided he should become president sooner. He officially became president at a ceremony in Gitega on June 18, 2020. This was two months earlier than planned.
Presidency of Burundi
Ndayishimiye started his seven-year term as president on June 18, 2020. He announced his first group of government ministers on June 28, 2020. He made the government smaller, reducing the number of ministers from 21 to 15.
President Ndayishimiye has been more involved with other countries than the previous president. He has made several trips to other nations. He also welcomed the President of Ethiopia to Burundi.
At first, Ndayishimiye took strong action against the COVID-19 pandemic. He called the virus Burundi's "worst enemy." In January 2021, he closed the country's borders. He said that anyone bringing COVID-19 into Burundi would be treated like someone bringing weapons. However, in February 2021, Burundi and Tanzania were the only African countries to say no to vaccines from the COVAX program. The health minister said that since most patients were getting better, vaccines were not yet needed. For most of 2021, Burundi did not try to get vaccines. But in October 2021, the government announced it had received 500,000 doses of the Chinese Sinopharm BIBP vaccine.
In December 2022, he went to the United States–Africa Leaders Summit 2022 in Washington, D.C. This meeting was hosted by US President Joe Biden.
In July 2023, he attended the 2023 Russia–Africa Summit in Saint Petersburg. There, he met with President of Russia Vladimir Putin. In the same month, he went to the opening ceremony of the 2021 Summer World University Games in Chengdu, China. While there, he met with General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Xi Jinping.
Since 2024, he has encouraged private and foreign investment in the tourism industry. On July 17, 2025, the African Union named Ndayishimiye as its special envoy to the Sahel region.
See also
In Spanish: Évariste Ndayishimiye para niños
