Mamadou Tandja President of Niger Country: Niger

1. Biography of Mamadou Tandja
2. Political Career
3. Presidency

Biography of Mamadou Tandja

Mamadou Tandja, the former President of Niger, was born in 1938 in Maine-Soroa, Niger. He played a significant role in the military coup in 1974, which brought Seyni Kountché to power, and Tandja became a member of the Supreme Military Council.

Political Career

From 1976, Tandja served as the prefect of Maradi. He then held the position of Minister of Internal Affairs from September 10, 1979, to August 31, 1981. Following that, he served as the prefect of Tawa until March 1988. In June 1988, he became the ambassador to Nigeria, and from March 1990 to March 1991, he returned as Minister of Internal Affairs.

In November 1991, Tandja became the chairman of the National Movement for the Development of Society party. In the 1993 presidential elections, he led in the first round but conceded defeat to Mahamane Ousmane in the second round. Tandja recognized his loss and accepted the outcome.

In 1994, he was arrested for participating in anti-government protests. In 1996, Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara organized a military coup and became the president. Tandja, who was one of the opposition candidates, was briefly imprisoned.

Presidency

In 1999, Maïnassara was assassinated, and a new military government led by Major Daouda Malam Wanké came to power. Presidential elections were held in November-October 1999. Tandja received 32% of the electorate's votes in the first round and 59.89% in the second, defeating Mahamane Issoufou. Consequently, Tandja became the President of Niger, and his party gained a majority in Parliament.

During his presidency, Tandja implemented a wide-ranging program to combat poverty and reduce the national debt by cutting state subsidies and grants. However, these measures sparked protests from students and the military. Tandja actively collaborated with trade unions and relied on foreign aid.

In 2004, Tandja ran for President of Niger again. He won the first round of elections with 40.7% of the votes, while the remaining votes were divided among his five competitors. In the second round, he secured 65.53% of the electorate's votes, reclaiming his position as the President of Niger. He was inaugurated on December 21, 2004.

Since 2005, Tandja has also served as the Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). He was the first President of Niger from the Fulani and Kanuri ethnic groups, rather than the Hausa or Djerma ethnicities.