Paul Biya
Paul Biya is the president of Cameroon and one of Africa's longest-serving heads of state, having held office since November 1982. He is a Cameroonian politician who previously served as prime minister under President Ahmadou Ahidjo from 1975 to 1982 before succeeding him. Biya has maintained power through a combination of constitutional amendments, controlled elections and a centralised political system dominated by his Cameroon People's Democratic Movement party. His tenure has been marked by periods of relative stability as well as significant challenges, including ongoing conflict in the Anglophone regions, security threats from Boko Haram in the north and persistent allegations of corruption and human-rights abuses. Born in 1933 in the village of Mvomeka'a in southern Cameroon, Biya studied law and political science in France before entering the civil service. He has overseen Cameroon's oil-dependent economy through boom and bust cycles, with limited diversification. At over 90 years of age, Biya's advanced years and infrequent public appearances have fuelled speculation about succession, though he continues to dominate Cameroon's political landscape. His government maintains close ties with France and other Western nations while also engaging with China and regional African partners.
Paul Biya Updates
Spat with Trump distracts from Pope Leo’s Africa tour
By: ISS, Institute for Security Studies 28th April 2026 The Pope used his Africa debut to address broader global issues – but left many local questions unanswered. Pope Leo XIVth’s 10-day African tour,... →
Pope Leo, in Cameroon, decries world 'ravaged by tyrants'
By: Reuters 16th April 2026 Pope Leo blasted leaders who spend billions on wars and said the world was "being ravaged by a handful of tyrants", in unusually forceful remarks... →
Pope Leo to hold peace meeting in Cameroon amid Trump attacks
By: Reuters 16th April 2026 Pope Leo was travelling to the biggest city in Cameroon's conflict-hit anglophone region on Thursday, the latest stop on an ambitious four-country... →
Pope Leo, attacked again by Trump, says world needs message of peace
By: Reuters 15th April 2026 Pope Leo said on Wednesday that the world needs to hear a message of peace and coexistence, after US President Donald Trump attacked him for a... →
Pope Leo, attacked again by Trump, flies to Cameroon on Africa tour
By: Reuters 15th April 2026 Pope Leo set off for Cameroon on Wednesday, where he is expected to appeal for peace in the simmering conflict in the country's English-speaking... →
Congo Republic's Sassou set to extend long rule, focus on succession
By: Reuters 10th March 2026 Congo Republic President Denis Sassou Nguesso looks set to extend his decades-long rule in elections on Sunday, even as his advanced age and a term... →
Congo-Brazzaville’s predictable election masks a brewing succession battle
By: ISS, Institute for Security Studies 9th March 2026 The growing pool of disaffected youth could test the ruling party’s grip on power, especially as succession questions loom. The Republic of the... →
ZANU-PF aims to recycle Mnangagwa through a ‘constitutional coup’
By: ISS, Institute for Security Studies 2nd March 2026 A constitutional amendment could give Zimbabwe’s president at least another two years in office, continuing Africa’s growing trend of lawfare.... →
Cameroon’s contested election sends ripples across fragile border economies
By: ISS, Institute for Security Studies 29th January 2026 Post-election ‘ghost town’ protests disrupted trade, revealing neighbouring countries’ economic reliance on stability in Cameroon. When Cameroon’s... →
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