Five unique facts about Burkina Faso’s Ibrahim Traore

Burkina Faso's Transitional President Captain Ibrahim Traore is a personality that attracts a lot of attention and interest across Africa and beyond. He's particularly admired by young people who see him as a revolutionary leader.

Here are five facts about him:

Youngest head of state

Captain Ibrahim Traore is the youngest head of state in the world, born on March 14, 1988. He's younger than Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa, the world’s second-youngest head of state, by about three and a half months, and 55 years younger than Cameroon's President Paul Biya, the world's oldest head of state at 92.

Military career 

Traore joined the Burkina Faso military in 2009 and rose through the ranks to become a captain in 2020. He was part of the UN peacekeeping force in Mali and later fought against insurgents in his country, earning him accolades. He seized power in a military coup in September 2022, toppling Colonel Paul-Henri Damiba.

 Sahel alliance

Traore's first foreign trip as head of state was to Mali, where he met military leader Colonel Assimi Goita on November 2, 2022. Mali and Niger are now Burkina Faso's closest allies and the trio have since a bloc known as the Alliance of Sahel States, AES, after they broke away from ECOWAS.

Limited trips 

The only African country Traore has visited outside the AES is Ghana, where he attended President John Mahama's inauguration on January 7, 2025.

Private life

While many heads of state are frequently seen with their spouses and children in public, for 37-year-old Traore, the issue of wife or children remains purely private.

Fist bump

Traore is known for his iconic fist bump greetings - handshakes are very rare, and he is a big fan and player of football.