Antoine Idji Kolawolé (born 1946) is a Beninese politician. He was the

minister of foreign affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

of Benin from 1998 to 2003 and the President of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the r ...

from 2003 to 2007.

Political career

Kolawolé was born in 1946 in Illikimou, near Kétou, Benin. Under President

Mathieu Kérékou Mathieu Kérékou (; 2 September 1933 – 14 October 2015) was a Beninese politician who served as President of Benin from 1972 to 1991 and again from 1996 to 2006. After seizing power in a military coup, he ruled the country for 19 years, for ...

, Kolawolé served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from May 1998 to May 2003, when he resigned. In the March 2003 parliamentary election, his party, the

African Movement for Development and Progress The African Movement for Development and Progress (french: Mouvement africain pour la développement et le progrès, MADEP) is a political party in Benin created in 1997. In the legislative elections held on 30 March 2003, the party was part of t ...

(MADEP), participated in the Presidential Movement, which supported Kérékou, and Kolawolé was elected as President of the National Assembly on April 25, 2003. Kolawolé served as First Vice-President of MADEP, and in September 2005 he was designated as the party's presidential candidate for the March 2006 presidential election. In the election, he took fifth place with 3.25% of the vote in the first round. He was re-elected to the National Assembly in the March 2007 parliamentary election as part of the

Alliance for a Dynamic Democracy The Alliance for a Democratic Dynamic (french: Alliance pour une Dynamique Démocratique) is an opposition alliance of Benin which contested the Beninese parliamentary election of 2007. It comprised the Social Democratic Party of Bruno Amoussou, ...

. Mathurin Nago was elected by the National Assembly to succeed Kolawolé as its President on May 3, 2007. In the April 2015 parliamentary election, he was re-elected to the National Assembly as a candidate of the

Union Makes the Nation Union Makes the Nation (french: L'Union fait la Nation, abbreviated UN or the Union) is an alliance of opposition political parties in Benin. It is composed of the MADEP, PSD, RB, Key Force, MDS, UNDP, MARCHE, PDPS and RDL VIVOTEN, and ther ...

coalition in the 21st constituency.Yao Hervé Kingbêwé
"Législatives : liste complète des 83 députés selon la CENA"
''La Nouvelle Tribune'', 2 May 2015 .

References

External links

January 1, 2001

Spécial Présidentielles 2006

Presidentials
1946 births Living people Presidents of the National Assembly (Benin) Members of the National Assembly (Benin) Foreign ministers of Benin African Movement for Development and Progress politicians Candidates for President of Benin {{Benin-politician-stub