The position of vice-president of the Republic of

Burundi Burundi (, ), officially the Republic of Burundi ( rn, Repuburika y’Uburundi ; Swahili language, Swahili: ''Jamuhuri ya Burundi''; French language, French: ''République du Burundi'' ), is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the ...

was created in June 1998, when a transitional constitution went into effect. It replaced the post of

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

History of the office

Interim period (1998–2001)

Pierre Buyoya Pierre Buyoya (24 November 1949 – 17 December 2020) was a Burundian army officer and politician who served two terms as President of Burundi in 1987 to 1993 and 1996 to 2003. He was the second-longest serving president in Burundian history. An ...

, a former

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

(1987–1993) who seized power in a 1996 military coup, was sworn in as President of the Republic on 11 June 1998. He appointed

Frédéric Bamvuginyumvira Frédéric Bamvuginyumvira (born 24 June 1961) is the former first Vice-President of Burundi from 11 June 1998 to 1 November 2001. He is a member of the Hutu ethnic group. Running as a candidate for the Front for Democracy in Burundi (FRODEBU) in t ...

, a

Hutu The Hutu (), also known as the Abahutu, are a Bantu ethnic or social group which is native to the African Great Lakes region. They mainly live in Rwanda, Burundi and the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, where they form one of the prin ...

member of the

Front for Democracy in Burundi The Front for Democracy in Burundi (french: link=no, Front pour la Démocratie au Burundi, FRODEBU) is a Hutu progressive political party in Burundi. History It was formed by followers of Melchior Ndadaye from the disbanded Burundi Workers' ...

(FRODEBU), as 1st vice-president. Mathias Sinamenye, a

Tutsi The Tutsi (), or Abatutsi (), are an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region. They are a Bantu-speaking ethnic group and the second largest of three main ethnic groups in Rwanda and Burundi (the other two being the largest Bantu ethnic grou ...

member of Buyoya's

Union for National Progress The Union for National Progress (french: Union pour le Progrès national, UPRONA) is a nationalist political party in Burundi. It initially emerged as a nationalist united front in opposition to Belgian colonial rule but subsequently became an i ...

(UPRONA) party, was appointed 2nd vice-president. According to the transitional constitution, the vice-presidency consisted of two posts: The 1st vice-president (Responsible for political and administrative affairs) and the 2nd vice-president (Responsible for economic and social affairs).

Transitional period (2001–2005)

A new transitional power-sharing government took office on 1 November 2001. Interim president Pierre Buyoya became transitional president for a period of 18 months. At the end of his term in 2003, Hutu Vice-President

Domitien Ndayizeye Domitien Ndayizeye (born 2 May 1953) is a Burundian politician who was President of Burundi from 2003 to 2005. He succeeded Pierre Buyoya, as president on 30 April 2003, after serving as Buyoya's vice president for 18 months. Ndayizeye remained in ...

took office and appointed a Tutsi ( Alphonse-Marie Kadege) as vice-president. In November 2004, Kadege was sacked as vice-president and replaced by

Frédéric Ngenzebuhoro Frédéric Ngenzebuhoro was Vice-President of Burundi from 11 November 2004 to 26 August 2005. He is an ethnic Tutsi and a member of the Union for National Progress (UPRONA) party.(12 November 2004)Burundi picks new vice-president ''BBC News'', Retr ...

. Although Ndayizeye's term was due to end in late 2004 following elections, the transitional period was extended and planned elections were delayed.

Elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operate ...

were held in mid-2005 and the transitional period is due to end on 26 August 2005, when the newly elected president takes office.

Vice-presidency 2005–2018

Burundi's new constitution, approved in a 28 February 2005

constitutional referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

, calls for a two-member vice-presidency (similar to that of the interim period). The 1st vice-president will be responsible for political and administrative affairs, while the 2nd vice-president will handle social and economic affairs. One vice-president will be an ethnic Hutu and the other a Tutsi. Nominees must be approved by both chambers of

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

in order to take office. On 29 August 2005, President

Pierre Nkurunziza Pierre Nkurunziza (18 December 19648 June 2020) was a Burundian politician who served as the ninth president of Burundi for almost 15 years from August 2005 until his death in June 2020. A member of the Hutu ethnic group, Nkurunziza taught ph ...

nominated Martin Nduwimana and

Alice Nzomukunda Alice Nzomukunda (born 12 April 1966) is a Burundian politician and former Second Vice-President of the country, from 29 August 2005 to 5 September 2006. She is an ethnic Hutu and was a member of the National Council for the Defense of Democracy-Fo ...

for the posts of 1st and 2nd vice-president. Both received approval from parliament and were immediately sworn in. Nzomukunda resigned on 5 September 2006. She was replaced by Marina Barampama two days later. In February 2007, Barampama was replaced by

Gabriel Ntisezerana Gabriel Ntisezerana is a Burundian politician who was Vice-President of Burundi from February 2007 to August 2010. Subsequently, he was President of the Senate of Burundi from August 2010 to August 2015. He is also a trained economist and banker. H ...

. In November 2007, Nduwimana was replaced by Yves Sahinguvu. In August 2010, Sahinguvu was replaced by Therence Sinunguruza and Ntisezerana was replaced by Gervais Rufyikiri.

Vice-presidency since 2018

New constitutional amendments were approved in a 17 May 2018

. The post of second vice-president will be abolished. The remaining vice-president, who will have limited powers, will be selected from a political party and ethnic group that differs from those of the President.

Key

;''Political parties'' * * *

List of officeholders

References

External links

Constitution of Burundi (In French)
{{Deputy heads of state and government of Africa

Government of Burundi Burundi, Vice-Presidents of

Vice-President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

1998 establishments in Burundi Burundi politics-related lists