Antoine Nduwayo facts for kids

Antoine Nduwayo was born in 1942. He served as the Prime Minister of Burundi from February 22, 1995, to July 31, 1996. He belongs to the Tutsi ethnic group in Burundi.

Becoming Prime Minister

Before becoming Prime Minister, Antoine Nduwayo worked as the executive secretary for the Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries (CEPGL). This group helps countries in the Great Lakes region work together.

In February 1995, the previous Prime Minister, Anatole Kanyenkiko, resigned. He was part of a political party called the Union pour le progrès national (UPRONA). Some members of his party wanted him to step down.

UPRONA and its allies then chose Antoine Nduwayo to be the new Prime Minister. He was accepted by everyone. After he was chosen, things became calmer in the capital city, Bujumbura. On February 22, 1995, the President, Sylvestre Ntibantunganya, who was from the Hutu ethnic group, officially appointed Nduwayo as Prime Minister.

At this time, there was a lot of tension in Burundi. People from the Hutu and Tutsi groups were having disagreements. Antoine Nduwayo became Prime Minister when these groups were struggling to share power peacefully. Violence increased in 1995 and early 1996.

Challenges as Prime Minister

In July 1996, the Organization of African Unity (OAU) held a meeting in Tanzania. The meeting was led by Julius Nyerere, a former president of Tanzania. He said that if needed, troops from East Africa would go to Burundi to help stop the violence between ethnic groups.

Under pressure, Prime Minister Nduwayo and President Ntibantunganya agreed to get help from these foreign troops. However, this decision caused protests in Burundi.

The Burundian army did not want foreign troops to come into the country. They put pressure on Nduwayo to change his mind. On July 24, 1996, Nduwayo's UPRONA party left the government. This caused the power-sharing government to fall apart.

The very next day, on July 25, 1996, Pierre Buyoya, a powerful Tutsi military leader and former president, took over the government without fighting. This is called a "coup." Antoine Nduwayo resigned shortly after this happened. Pascal-Firmin Ndimira became the new Prime Minister on July 31, 1996.

After Being Prime Minister

After leaving his role as Prime Minister, Antoine Nduwayo became the Director-General of a financial company called Caisse de Mobilization et de Financement (CAMOFI). This company faced big problems and closed down in 1998.

Then, Nduwayo went on to manage another bank, the Banque de commerce et de développement (BCD), which started in 1999. However, this bank also had many problems and was poorly managed. In 2004, the central bank had to take over BCD because it was failing.

In May 2001, Antoine Nduwayo was part of a group from Burundi that traveled to South Africa. They met with Nelson Mandela, who was helping to find solutions for the problems in Burundi.

In April 2017, Antoine Nduwayo visited the Kigali Genocide Memorial in Rwanda with a group of young Burundians. He said it was important for people in Burundi to learn from Rwanda's history. He wanted to make sure that political tensions in Burundi would not lead to similar terrible events.

In October 2020, a court in Burundi made a decision about the assassination of President Melchior Ndadaye in 1993. Many former officials were found guilty, including former president Pierre Buyoya. Antoine Nduwayo was also accused, but he was the only one who was found innocent.

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