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People, Africa's heads of state

Longest serving presidents in Africa

Every African president ranked by how long they have held office without a break, with the day each took office. Years in office update every day.

Who is counted

We count the 51 presidents who are head of state of an African country today, as listed in our government directory with an official source for each. This includes leaders who chair a council acting as head of state, as in Sudan and Libya, and presidents whose post is ceremonial, which we mark. The 3 kings of Morocco, Eswatini and Lesotho are listed separately at the end.

Time in office counts from the day a president took office and runs without a break to today. A president re-elected without a gap keeps counting from their first day. Earlier, separate spells in office are mentioned in the notes but not added.

Time in office at a glance

  • Longest: Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo

    47.2 years

  • Middle of 51 presidents

    5.3 years

  • In office 20 years or more

    7 presidents

  • In office less than two years

    11 presidents

Source: PollsAfrica government directory (current office holders, from official sources); Wikidata (birth dates and dates in office). Last checked 24 October 2026.

The longest serving presidents in AfricaYears in continuous office as of 24 October 2026. The ten longest.
Teodoro Obiang Nguema MbasogoEquatorial Guinea47.2Paul BiyaCameroon43.9Yoweri Kaguta MuseveniUganda40.7Isaias AfwerkiEritrea33.4Denis Sassou N'GuessoCongo28.9Ismail Omar GuellehDjibouti27.4Paul KagameRwanda26.5Alassane OuattaraCôte d'Ivoire15.8Salva Kiir MayarditSouth Sudan15.2Abdel Fattah El-SisiEgypt12.3
Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, Equatorial Guinea47.2Paul Biya, Cameroon43.9Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, Uganda40.7Isaias Afwerki, Eritrea33.4Denis Sassou N'Guesso, Congo28.9Ismail Omar Guelleh, Djibouti27.4Paul Kagame, Rwanda26.5Alassane Ouattara, Côte d'Ivoire15.8Salva Kiir Mayardit, South Sudan15.2Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, Egypt12.3
View the data as a table
ItemDetailValue
Teodoro Obiang Nguema MbasogoEquatorial Guinea47.2
Paul BiyaCameroon43.9
Yoweri Kaguta MuseveniUganda40.7
Isaias AfwerkiEritrea33.4
Denis Sassou N'GuessoCongo28.9
Ismail Omar GuellehDjibouti27.4
Paul KagameRwanda26.5
Alassane OuattaraCôte d'Ivoire15.8
Salva Kiir MayarditSouth Sudan15.2
Abdel Fattah El-SisiEgypt12.3

Source: PollsAfrica government directory (current office holders, from official sources); Wikidata (birth dates and dates in office). Last checked 24 October 2026.

All 51 African presidents by time in officeClick a heading to sort. Search by name or filter by note.

Showing 51 of 51

Rank
21Abdelmadjid TebbouneAlgeria8017 November 194512 December 20196.8Elected or appointed under the constitution
14João Manuel Gonçalves LourençoAngola725 March 195426 September 20179.0Elected or appointed under the constitution
51Romuald WadagniBenin5020 June 197624 May 20260.4Elected or appointed under the constitution
41Duma Gideon BokoBotswana5631 December 19691 November 20241.9Elected or appointed under the constitution
34Ibrahim TraoréBurkina Faso3814 March 198821 October 20224.0Came to power in a military takeover
22Evariste NdayishimiyeBurundi5817 June 196818 June 20206.3Elected or appointed under the constitution
30José Maria Pereira NevesCabo Verde6628 March 19609 November 20214.9Elected or appointed under the constitution
2Paul BiyaCameroon9313 February 19336 November 198243.9Elected or appointed under the constitution
11Faustin-Archange TouadéraCentral African Republic6921 April 195730 March 201610.5Elected or appointed under the constitution
24Mahamat Idriss Deby ItnoChad424 April 198420 April 20215.5Came to power in a military takeover
12Azali AssoumaniComoros671 January 195926 May 201610.4Elected or appointed under the constitution
5Denis Sassou N'GuessoCongo8223 November 194325 October 199728.9Elected or appointed under the constitution
8Alassane OuattaraCôte d'Ivoire841 January 19424 December 201015.8Elected or appointed under the constitution
18Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi TshilomboDemocratic Republic of the Congo6313 June 196325 January 20197.7Elected or appointed under the constitution
6Ismail Omar GuellehDjibouti7827 November 19478 May 199927.4Elected or appointed under the constitution
10Abdel Fattah El-SisiEgypt7119 November 19548 June 201412.3Elected or appointed under the constitution
1Teodoro Obiang Nguema MbasogoEquatorial Guinea845 June 19423 August 197947.2Elected or appointed under the constitution
4Isaias AfwerkiEritrea802 February 194619 May 199333.4Elected or appointed under the constitution
40Taye Atske SelassieEthiopia7013 January 19567 October 20242.0Ceremonial post
37Brice Clotaire Oligui NguemaGabon513 March 197530 August 20233.1Came to power in a military takeover
13Adama BarrowGambia6115 February 196519 January 20179.7Elected or appointed under the constitution
43John Dramani MahamaGhana6729 November 19587 January 20251.7Elected or appointed under the constitution
49Horta Inta-AGuinea-Bissau661960, exact date not published27 November 20250.9Came to power in a military takeover
28Mamadi DoumbouyaGuinea415 December 19841 October 20215.0Came to power in a military takeover
33William Samoei RutoKenya5921 December 196613 September 20224.1Elected or appointed under the constitution
38Joseph Nyuma Boakai Sr.Liberia8130 November 194422 January 20242.7Elected or appointed under the constitution
23Muhammad al-ManfiLibya503 March 197615 March 20215.6Elected or appointed under the constitution
47Michaël RandrianirinaMadagascar521974, exact date not published14 October 20251.0Came to power in a military takeover
48Arthur Peter MutharikaMalawi8618 July 19404 October 20251.0Elected or appointed under the constitution
26Assimi GoïtaMali429 November 19837 June 20215.3Came to power in a military takeover
19Mohamed Ould Cheikh El GhazouaniMauritania6931 December 19561 August 20197.2Elected or appointed under the constitution
42Dharambeer GokhoolMauritius7625 October 19497 December 20241.8Ceremonial post
44Daniel Francisco ChapoMozambique496 January 197715 January 20251.7Elected or appointed under the constitution
45Netumbo Nandi-NdaitwahNamibia7329 October 195221 March 20251.5Elected or appointed under the constitution
36Abdourahamane TianiNiger651961, exact date not published28 July 20233.2Came to power in a military takeover
35Bola Ahmed TinubuNigeria7429 March 195229 May 20233.4Elected or appointed under the constitution
7Paul KagameRwanda6923 October 195722 April 200026.5Elected or appointed under the constitution
29Carlos Manuel Vila NovaSão Tomé and Príncipe6727 July 19592 October 20215.0Elected or appointed under the constitution
39Bassirou Diomaye FayeSenegal4625 March 19802 April 20242.5Elected or appointed under the constitution
50Patrick HerminieSeychelles6322 September 196326 October 20250.9Elected or appointed under the constitution
17Julius Maada BioSierra Leone6212 May 19644 April 20188.5Elected or appointed under the constitution
32Hassan Sheikh MohamudSomalia7029 November 195523 May 20224.4Elected or appointed under the constitution
16Matamela Cyril RamaphosaSouth Africa7317 November 195215 February 20188.6Elected or appointed under the constitution
9Salva Kiir MayarditSouth Sudan7513 September 19519 July 201115.2Elected or appointed under the constitution
31Abdel Fattah al-BurhanSudan6611 July 196011 November 20214.9Came to power in a military takeover
25Samia Suluhu HassanTanzania6627 January 196019 March 20215.5Elected or appointed under the constitution
46Jean-Lucien Savi de TovéTogo877 May 19393 May 20251.4Ceremonial post
20Kaïs SaïedTunisia6822 February 195823 October 20197.0Elected or appointed under the constitution
3Yoweri Kaguta MuseveniUganda8215 September 194426 January 198640.7Elected or appointed under the constitution
27Hakainde HichilemaZambia644 June 196224 August 20215.1Elected or appointed under the constitution
15Emmerson Dambudzo MnangagwaZimbabwe8415 September 194224 November 20178.9Elected or appointed under the constitution

Source: PollsAfrica government directory (current office holders, from official sources); Wikidata (birth dates and dates in office). Last checked 24 October 2026.

Each president's page

Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo (Equatorial Guinea), Paul Biya (Cameroon), Yoweri Kaguta Museveni (Uganda), Isaias Afwerki (Eritrea), Denis Sassou N'Guesso (Congo), Ismail Omar Guelleh (Djibouti), Paul Kagame (Rwanda), Alassane Ouattara (Côte d'Ivoire), Salva Kiir Mayardit (South Sudan), Abdel Fattah El-Sisi (Egypt), Faustin-Archange Touadéra (Central African Republic), Azali Assoumani (Comoros), Adama Barrow (Gambia), João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço (Angola), Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa (Zimbabwe), Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa (South Africa), Julius Maada Bio (Sierra Leone), Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo (Democratic Republic of the Congo), Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani (Mauritania), Kaïs Saïed (Tunisia), Abdelmadjid Tebboune (Algeria), Evariste Ndayishimiye (Burundi), Muhammad al-Manfi (Libya), Samia Suluhu Hassan (Tanzania), Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno (Chad), Assimi Goïta (Mali), Hakainde Hichilema (Zambia), Mamadi Doumbouya (Guinea), Carlos Manuel Vila Nova (São Tomé and Príncipe), José Maria Pereira Neves (Cabo Verde), Abdel Fattah al-Burhan (Sudan), Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (Somalia), William Samoei Ruto (Kenya), Ibrahim Traoré (Burkina Faso), Bola Ahmed Tinubu (Nigeria), Abdourahamane Tiani (Niger), Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema (Gabon), Joseph Nyuma Boakai Sr. (Liberia), Bassirou Diomaye Faye (Senegal), Taye Atske Selassie (Ethiopia), Duma Gideon Boko (Botswana), Dharambeer Gokhool (Mauritius), John Dramani Mahama (Ghana), Daniel Francisco Chapo (Mozambique), Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah (Namibia), Jean-Lucien Savi de Tové (Togo), Arthur Peter Mutharika (Malawi), Michaël Randrianirina (Madagascar), Patrick Herminie (Seychelles), Horta Inta-A (Guinea-Bissau), Romuald Wadagni (Benin)

Notes on individual presidents

Africa's kings

Africa's three reigning monarchs are heads of state too, but they are not elected, so we keep them out of the presidents' ranking.

  • Mswati III, Eswatini: born 19 April 1968, on the throne since 25 April 1986.
  • Letsie III, Lesotho: born 17 July 1963, on the throne since 7 February 1996.
  • Mohammed VI, Morocco: born 21 August 1963, on the throne since 30 July 1999.

Method and sources

Who holds each office comes from our government directory, where every entry links to an official source such as a presidency or government website. Birth dates and the dates each president took office come from Wikidata, a free public database, and we compared them with our directory.

Where our directory gives a later date because a president started a new term, we use the day they first took office in their current, unbroken spell. Where a birth date has only ever been published as a year, we show the year and work the age out from it.

Ages and years in office on this page are worked out on the day you read it. We last checked who holds each office and every date on 24 October 2026.

More rankings

Frequently asked questions

Who is the longest serving president in Africa?

Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea, in office since 3 August 1979.

How many African presidents have been in power for 20 years or more?

7 of the 51 presidents counted on this page.

Is the longest serving leader in Africa a president?

Among presidents, yes. Kings are listed separately at the end of this page because they are not elected.

How is time in office counted?

From the day a president took office, without a break, to today. Earlier, separate spells are mentioned in the notes but not added.