Algirdas Butkevičius (born 19 November 1958) is a Lithuanian politician and was

Prime Minister of Lithuania The prime minister of Lithuania ( lt, Ministras Pirmininkas; "Minister-Chairman") is the head of the government of Lithuania. The prime minister is Lithuania's head of government and is appointed by the president with the assent of the Lithuania ...

, serving between 2012 and 2016. He also served as the

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

from 2004 to 2005 and the Minister of Transport and Communications from 2006 to 2008. He led the

Social Democratic Party of Lithuania The Social Democratic Party of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos socialdemokratų partija, LSDP) is a centre-left and social democratic political party in Lithuania. Founded as an underground Marxist organization in 1896, it is the oldest extant party i ...

from 2009 to 2017.

Political career

Butkevičius was born at Paežeriai village in

Radviliškis district municipality Radviliškis () (german: Radwilischken; pl, Radziwiliszki; yi, ראדווילישאָק, ''Radvilishok'') is a town in the Radviliškis district municipality, Šiauliai County, Lithuania. Radviliškis has been the administrative center of the ...

. Since 1992 he is member of the

(LSDP). He was chairman of the

Vilkaviškis District Vilkaviškis () is a city in southwestern Lithuania, the administrative center of the Vilkaviškis District Municipality. It is located northwest from Marijampolė, at the confluence of of and rivers. The city got its name from the Vilka ...

section of LSDP in 1995–1997, deputy chairman of the LSDP in 1999–2005 (re-elected in 2001), and chairman of the LSDP since 2009. In 1996 and 2000, he was elected to the

Seimas The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublikos Seimas), or simply the Seimas (), is the unicameral parliament of Lithuania. The Seimas constitutes the legislative branch of government in Lithuania, enacting laws and amendmen ...

(parliament). From 2004 to 2005 he served as

and from 2006 to 2008 as Minister of Transport and Communications. Butkevičius was the LSDP's candidate in the 2009 presidential election, placing second with 11.83% of the votes. As of 2010, he is the chairman of the LSDP. During the 2012 parliamentary election, Butkevičius was among the few candidates who were elected in the first round of the popular vote. On 22 November 2012 he was elected by the Seimas to be Prime Minister-designate. He was appointed as Prime Minister by presidential decree on 7 December 2012Prime Minister biography
at the government website (retrieved 13 December 2012) and his cabinet was sworn in on 13 December, following the approval of the governmental program by the parliament.
/ref> In the beginning of 2022, Butkevičius joined the new party

Union of Democrats "For Lithuania" The Union of Democrats "For Lithuania" ( lt, Demokratų sąjunga „Vardan Lietuvos“; DSVL) is a Lithuanian political party founded on January 29, 2022 by Saulius Skvernelis, former Prime Minister of Lithuania. The party described itself as bein ...

, founded by

Saulius Skvernelis Saulius Skvernelis (born 23 July 1970) is a Lithuanian politician who served as prime minister of Lithuania between 2016 and 2020. He is currently a member of the Seimas. Previously he served as police commissioner, and was Minister of the Inte ...

, who succeeded Butevičius as prime minister in 2016.

Education and career timeline

*1977 graduation from Šeduva Secondary School, district of

Radviliškis Radviliškis () (german: Radwilischken; pl, Radziwiliszki; yi, ראדווילישאָק, ''Radvilishok'') is a town in the Radviliškis district municipality, Šiauliai County, Lithuania. Radviliškis has been the administrative center of the ...

. *1977-1979 Military service in Signals-Communications Troops of the Soviet Army, rank

Junior Sergeant A junior sergeant is a military rank used in the armed forces of many countries. It is usually placed below sergeant. Russia Junior sergeant (russian: Младший сержант, Mladshy serzhant) is the designation to the lowest rank in the ...

. *1984 Diploma of Engineering Economist, Faculty of Economics, Vilnius Civil Engineering Institute (currently

Vilnius Gediminas Technical University Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (VILNIUS TECH) is a public university located in Vilnius, Lithuania. There are 10 faculties including Antanas Gustaitis Aviation Institute, Architecture, Business Management, Civil Engineering, Creative I ...

) *1990–1991 Diploma of Technical Manager, Lithuanian Management Academy *1995 Master's Degree in Management,

Kaunas University of Technology Kaunas University of Technology (abbreviated as KTU, ) is a public research university located in Kaunas, Lithuania. Established in 1922, KTU has been one of the top centers of Lithuanian science education. According to Lithuanian National Univ ...

*1994 Traineeship, Management Academy in Würzburg, Germany. 1998, 1999, 2001 – traineeships in the United States of America and Denmark. *2008 Doctor's Degree in Economics *1982–1985 Industrial Association "Žemūktechnika", Vilkaviškis district *1985–1990 Architect, Executive Committee of Vilkaviškis district; Inspector, State Construction and Architecture Unit, Vilkaviškis district *1991–1995 Deputy Governor, Vilkaviškis district *1995–1996 Director of Market Research and Marketing, Joint Stock Company AB Vilkauta *1996–2008 Member of the 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th Seimas, elected in Vilkaviškis electoral constituency No 68 as candidate of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party. He has served in the following committees: Committee on Budget and Finance (chairman in 2001–2004), Committee on European Affairs (2005–2006) and Committee on Economics (2006–2008) *2004–2005 Minister of Finance, 12th and 13th Governments of the Republic of Lithuania *2006–2008 Minister of Transport and Communications, 14th Government of the Republic of Lithuania *1990–1997 and 2000–2002 Member of the Municipal Council of Vilkaviškis district *1995–1997 Member of the Municipal Board of Vilkaviškis district *7 December 2012 appointed Prime Minister by Presidential Decree

Personal life

In addition to his native Lithuanian, he speaks fluent Russian. His wife is Janina, and they have one daughter, Indrė.

References

External links

Algirdas Butkevicius: euro adoption in Lithuania to take place in 2013–2014 (The Baltic Course)
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Butkevicius, Algirdas 1958 births 21st-century Lithuanian politicians Living people Members of the Seimas Ministers of Finance of Lithuania Ministers of Transport and Communications of Lithuania Prime Ministers of Lithuania Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 1st Class Social Democratic Party of Lithuania politicians Social Democratic Labour Party of Lithuania politicians Vilnius Gediminas Technical University alumni Vice-mayors of places in Lithuania Independent politicians in Lithuania People from Radviliškis District Municipality