Sylvie Kinigi

Sylvie Kinigi ( Ntigashira; born 24 November 1953) is a Burundian politician and economist who served as prime minister of Burundi from 10 July 1993 to 7 February 1994, and acting president from November 1993 to 5 February 1994, making her the second African woman to serve as a president.

Sylvie Ntigashira was born on 24 November 1953 in Mugoyi, Ruanda-Urundi (today in Bujumbura Rural Province).

Ethnically, she is Tutsi.

Her father was a merchant, while her mother farmed and maintained their home.

The third of six children, Ntigashira was allowed to attend school while the oldest daughter in the family helped their mother.

She was given a primary and secondary education by nuns in the Ijenda parish.

Urundi became independent from Belgium as Burundi in July 1962.

The country quickly fell under the political domination of Tutsis at the expense of the Hutu majority ethnic group.

Kinigi believed that democracy was introduced too rapidly in Burundi without proper preparation, leading to political organising along ethnic lines and the heightening of ethnic tensions.

Burundi's government became controlled by Tutsi military officers, who ruled for approximately 30 years.

In 1973, Ntigashira married a Burundian academic, Firmin Kinigi, who had taught her in school, and had four or five children with him.

He was ethnically Hutu.

Her husband supported her desire to further her education and career and the family hired a maid to take care of their house and children.

Born to a Tutsi family, she earned a degree in banking from the University of Burundi in 1979 and another diploma from the Centre de Formation de la Profession Bancaire in Paris.

She then studied at the University of Burundi under the Faculty of Economic Sciences, graduating in 1979 with a degree in banking and credit.

Politically, Kinigi was closely affiliated with the Union pour le Progrès national (UPRONA), Burundi's only legal political party at the time, and was an active member of the Union des Femmes Burundaises, a subgroup of UPRONA, serving as a member of its central committee by 1987.

In that capacity she lobbied for legislative changes and government measures to benefit women.

Politically, Kinigi was closely affiliated with the Union pour le Progrès national (UPRONA), Burundi's only legal political party, and was an active member of the Union des Femmes Burundaises, a subgroup of UPRONA, serving as a member of its central committee by 1987.

In that capacity she lobbied for legislative changes and government measures to benefit women.

In 1990 Kinigi was hired by the Bank of the Republic of Burundi to direct its department of research and statistics, and the following year she was placed in charge of Burundi's structural adjustment program.

In 1990 she earned a Diplômes d'études supérieures from the Centre de Formation de la Profession Bancaire in Paris.

In 1990 Kinigi was hired by the Bank of the Republic of Burundi to direct its department of research and statistics, while also teaching courses at the University of Burundi.

In 1991 she left the job when President Pierre Buyoya appointed her Special Consultant in the Office of the Prime Minister, making her responsible for the implementation of Burundi's structural adjustment program.

In that capacity she conducted negotiations with the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and foreign donors.

Impressed with her work, Buyoya subsequently appointed her Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Economic Planning.

He died in either 1992 or 1993.

In the summer of 1993 Burundi hosted free elections, which were won by UPRONA's rival, Front pour la Démocratie au Burundi (FRODEBU).

The new FRODEBU President of Burundi, Melchior Ndadaye, appointed Kinigi prime minister of Burundi on 10 July.

Kinigi wished to pursue economic development while she was prime minister, but thought that this could not be achieved until ethnic tensions between Tutsis and Hutus were reduced.

Thus, she declared that ethnic reconciliation would be her top priority.

On 21 October President Ndadaye and several other officials were killed by Tutsi soldiers in a coup attempt, leaving her the highest-ranking official alive and the de facto head of state of Burundi.

She joined her surviving ministers in the French embassy until she could return to her residence under French military guard as the coup failed.

Though her government proved unable to contain the ethnic violence following the coup, she played a key role in brokering a political compromise that allowed for the election of Cyprien Ntaryamira as the next president.

In the summer of 1993 Burundi underwent a democratic transition.

The country hosted free elections, which were won by UPRONA's rival, Front pour la Démocratie au Burundi (FRODEBU).

The new president of Burundi, Melchior Ndadaye—the leader of FRODEBU and the first Hutu to become head of state, offered Kinigi the position of prime minister of Burundi in his new government to succeed Adrien Sibomana.

She reportedly considered the offer for some time, but eventually decided to accept it, reasoning that she was not more politically inexperienced than the army officers which had previously ruled the country.

Furthermore, she was personally acquainted with Ndadaye, having studied alongside him at Parisian institutions and even sat on a committee that judged his academic performance.

She resigned when he took office in 1994 and assumed an executive position at the Banque Commerciale du Burundi.

She then held several international positions before returning to Burundi in 2008 and becoming an independent economic consultant.