Yacouba Isaac Zida

Yacouba Isaac Zida (born 16 November 1965)[1] is a Burkinabé military officer who briefly served as Burkina Faso's acting head of state in November 2014. He took power in the aftermath of the 2014 Burkinabé uprising, sidelining a more senior officer, Honoré Nabéré Traoré. A few weeks later, a civilian, Michel Kafando, was chosen to replace Zida as transitional head of state; Kafando then appointed Zida as Prime Minister on 19 November 2014.

Isaac Zida
Prime Minister of Burkina Faso
In office 23 September 2015 – 29 December 2015
President	Michel Kafando (Transitional)
Preceded by	Vacant
Succeeded by	Paul Kaba Thieba
In office 19 November 2014 – 17 September 2015
President	Michel Kafando (Transitional)
Preceded by	Luc-Adolphe Tiao
Succeeded by	Vacant
Head of State of Burkina Faso Transitional
In office 1 November 2014 – 18 November 2014
Preceded by	Honoré Traoré (as President)
Succeeded by	Michel Kafando (as Transitional President)
Personal details
Born	(1965-11-16) 16 November 1965 Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso)
Political party	Independent
Military service
Allegiance	Burkina Faso
Years of service	Until 2017
Rank	Divisional General
Unit	Regiment of Presidential Security (until 2015)
*Kafando was briefly deposed from 17 September 2015 – 23 September 2015 by Gilbert Diendéré.

Zida was briefly removed from office by the Regiment of Presidential Security in a September 2015 coup, but he was restored as Prime Minister within a week.

Early career

Zida obtained a master's degree in International Management from the University of Lyon.[2] He also received military training from the American army.[3] Under President Blaise Compaoré, he served as deputy commander of the Regiment of Presidential Security.[4] He was a UN peacekeeper in Democratic Republic of the Congo from 2008 to 2009.[2]

2014 Burkinabé uprising

Kossyam palace, where Zida aligned himself with the protesters

Amidst the 2014 Burkinabé uprising, President Compaoré resigned on 31 October 2014 and army chief Honoré Nabéré Traoré announced that he was taking over as head of state, but his claim to power was immediately contested by a group of junior officers headed by Zida, who aligned himself with the protesters.[5] On 1 November 2014, the armed forces unanimously backed Zida to lead the country in an interim capacity towards the 2015 presidential election.[6][7]

On 17 November 2014, a civilian, Michel Kafando, was chosen to replace Zida as transitional head of state, and he was sworn in on 18 November.[8] Kafando then appointed Zida as Prime Minister of Burkina Faso on 19 November 2014.[9] In the transitional government, appointed on 23 November, Zida held the defense portfolio in addition to his role as Prime Minister.[10][11]

In mid-2015 there was a dispute between Zida and the Regiment of Presidential Security. In early July it was reported that he had resigned, but he refuted the reports and criticized the press for careless reporting.[12] Nevertheless, he faced opposition from the military as well as Compaoré supporters, leaving him in a precarious position, although he maintained the support of Sankarists led by Bénéwendé Sankara.[13] On 19 July 2015, President Kafando stripped Zida of the defense portfolio and took over the portfolio himself. He also dismissed Auguste Denise Barry, who was closely associated with Zida, from his key post as Minister of Territorial Administration and Security.[14][15]

On 16 September 2015, two days after a recommendation from the National Reconciliation and Reforms Commission to disband the Regiment of Presidential Security (RSP), members of the RSP detained President Kafando and Prime Minister Zida.[16][17] On 23 September, after the coup failed, Zida was reinstated as Prime Minister.[18]

In November 2015, near the end of the transitional period, Zida was promoted from the rank of lieutenant-colonel to général de division in line with a law passed during the transition that provided for promotions to be granted "for services rendered to the nation".[19] Roch Marc Christian Kaboré, who was elected as President, was sworn in on 29 December 2015[20] and subsequently appointed Paul Kaba Thieba, an economist, as Prime Minister.[21]

The law providing for Zida's promotion was scrapped by the newly elected National Assembly. With permission from President Kaboré, Zida traveled to Canada in January 2016 to visit his family. He was due to return in February, but he failed to do so despite orders from Kaboré. In December 2016, Kaboré said that Zida would be expelled from the army for desertion.[22]

References

1. "Burkina Faso: qui est Isaac Zida, adoubé par l'armée et déjà contesté?". Radio France Internationale (in French). 2014-11-02. Archived from the original on 2014-11-03. Retrieved 2019-01-26.
2. Press TV, . (3 November 2014). "Zida, le nouvel homme fort du Burkina Faso". PressTv.In. Retrieved 3 November 2014.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
3. Burkina Faso: Not so pretty now, economist.com.
4. Press TV, . (1 November 2014). "2nd Burkinabe Army Commander Declares Himself President". PressTv.In. Retrieved 2 November 2014.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
5. "Two feuding army chiefs both claim power after Burkina Faso's president resigns, flees the country". ABC (Australia). 1 November 2014. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
6. AFP, . (1 November 2014). "Burkina Army Backs Zida As Interim Leader". New Vision (Kampala) Quoting Agence France-Presse (AFP). Retrieved 2 November 2014.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
7. "Burkina Faso Has New Leader". VOA. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
8. "Kafando sworn in as Burkina Faso transitional president", Reuters, 18 November 2014.
9. Mathieu Bonkoungou and Nadoun Coulibaly, "Burkina Faso names army colonel Zida as prime minister", Reuters, 19 November 2014.
10. "Le gouvernement de la transition est connu", Lefaso.net, 23 November 2014 (in French).
11. "Transitional government appointed in Burkina Faso", Reuters, 24 November 2014.
12. Mariama Diallo, "Burkina Faso PM denies resignation rumors", Voice of America, 6 July 2015.
13. "Burkina Faso: qui sont les soutiens et les opposants de Zida?", Radio France Internationale, 15 July 2015 (in French).
14. "Burkina Faso reshuffles govt 3 months before polls", Deutsche Presse-Agentur, 20 July 2015.
15. "Burkina Faso reshuffles government 3 months before elections", Reuters, 20 July 2015.
16. Ouedraogo, Brahima (16 September 2015). "Military detains Burkina Faso's president, prime minister weeks ahead of landmark vote". U.S. News & World Report. Associated Press. Retrieved 16 September 2015.
17. Coulibaly, Nadoun; Flynn, Daniel (16 September 2015). "Burkina Faso presidential guard detains cabinet - military sources". Reuters. Retrieved 16 September 2015.
18. Patrick Fort and Romaric Ollo Hien, "Burkina president resumes power after week-long coup", Agence France-Presse, 23 September 2015.
19. "Zida nommé Général de Division", Burkina24, 27 November 2016 (in French).
20. "Burkina Faso swears in new president, capping transition", Agence France-Presse, 29 December 2015.
21. "Burkina Faso's president names economist as prime minister", Reuters, 7 January 2016.
22. "Burkina : Yacouba Isaac Zida sera rayé de l’armée pour « désertion »", Jeune Afrique, 30 December 2016 (in French).

Political offices
Preceded by Blaise Compaoré as President	President of Burkina Faso Transitional 2014	Succeeded by Michel Kafando as Transitional President
Preceded by Luc-Adolphe Tiao	Prime Minister of Burkina Faso 2014–2015	Succeeded by Paul Kaba Thieba