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Abdourahamane Tchiani

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Abdourahamane Tchiani[a] (born 1960s) is a Nigerien military officer and politician who has served as president of Niger since 2025. The Chief of the Nigerien Presidential Guard since 2011, he overthrew president Mohamed Bazoum in 2023, becoming the leader of a junta. He was inaugurated as president of Niger two years later.

His Excellency
General
Abdourahamane Tchiani
Headshot of a seated Tchiani looking right
Tchiani in 2025
11th President of Niger
Incumbent
Assumed office
26 March 2025
Prime MinisterAli Lamine Zeine
Preceded byMohamed Bazoum (2023)
President of the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland
Incumbent
Assumed office
28 July 2023[1][2][3]
Prime MinisterAli Lamine Zeine
Vice PresidentSalifou Modi
Preceded byCollective leadership[4][5][6][7][8]
Leader of Niger[9][6]
De facto
26 July 2023 – 28 July 2023
PresidentCollective leadership[4][5][6][7][8]
Preceded byMohamed Bazoum (as President)
Succeeded byHimself (as President of the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland)
Commander of the Presidential Guards
In office
8 April 2011 – 8 August 2023
PresidentMahamadou Issoufou
Mohamed Bazoum
Succeeded byHabibou Assoumane
Personal details
Born1960s
Toukounous, Filingué, Niger
Military service
AllegianceNiger
National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland
Branch/serviceNiger Army
Years of service
1984–present
RankGeneral
Battles/warsBoko Haram insurgency
Jihadist insurgency in Niger
2021 Nigerien coup attempt
2023 Nigerien coup d'état
2023–2024 Nigerien crisis

As leader of Niger, he oversaw a diplomatic standoff with ECOWAS stemming from the coup, the establishment of the Alliance of Sahel States, and withdrawal from ECOWAS.

Early life

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Tchiani was born in 1960, 1961,[10] or 1964.[11][12] He hails from Toukounous in the Tillabéri Region,[11] a main recruitment area for the Nigerien army in the west of the country.[13] He is an ethnic Hausa.[14] He completed his secondary education in the capital Niamey, graduating with a Baccalauréat in 1984. He then joined the army and studied at the National School of Active Officers in Thiès, Senegal in the same year.[15]

Military career

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Before becoming Commander of the Presidential guard, he led forces in Zinder, Agadez, and Diffa regions where he combated drug trafficking.[15] In 1989, he was the first officer to make it to the site of the UTA Flight 772 crash in the Ténéré desert, for which he was decorated.[16] He also served in UN peacekeeping missions in the Ivory Coast, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.[17] He also served in the Multinational Joint Task Force set up by Niger, Chad, Nigeria and Cameroon to fight Boko Haram.[14]

In 2011, Tchiani assumed command of the Presidential Guard and was a close ally of then-President Mahamadou Issoufou, who promoted him to general in 2018. In 2015, Tchiani was accused of involvement in a coup plot against Issoufou but denied the charges in court.[18] He was otherwise regarded as keeping his views to himself during that time.[14]

In 2021, Tchiani led the unit that thwarted an attempted coup; at the time a military unit tried to seize the presidential palace two days before Issoufou stepped down to make way for his democratically elected successor, Mohamed Bazoum, who retained Tchiani in his post.[13]

Seizure of power

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On 26 July 2023, Tchiani ordered presidential guards to detain Bazoum at his presidential residence in Niamey. Bazoum was planning to relieve Tchiani from his position.[19] Sources close to Bazoum said that he had decided on Tchiani's dismissal at a cabinet meeting on 24 July as their relations had reportedly become strained.[20]

On 28 July, Tchiani revealed himself as the president of the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland, which took power on 26 July, in an address on state television. He said the coup was undertaken to avoid "the gradual and inevitable demise" of the country and said that Bazoum had tried to hide "the harsh reality" of the country, which he called "a pile of dead, displaced, humiliation and frustration". He also criticized the government's security strategy for its purported ineffectiveness.[21][18][22]

ECOWAS relations

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ECOWAS responded to the coup by imposing the strictest travel and economic sanctions the bloc ever imposed on a member state, demanding the reinstatement of Bazoum.[23] As blackouts and supply disruptions roiled Niger, Tchiani criticized the sanctions as illegal and inhumane. In a meeting with an ECOWAS delegation, Tchiani proposed a three-year window for a transition to civilian rule, which ECOWAS rejected in favor of an immediate transfer of power.[24] ECOWAS lifted the sanctions for humanitarian reasons after Niger had departed the organization.[25]

Leadership

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Under Tchiani's leadership, Niger established the Alliance of Sahel States with Burkina Faso and Mali in 2023,[26] and left ECOWAS with them in 2024.[27] US and EU troops were withdrawn from the country. The country also aligned itself closer to Russia and mercenary troops from the Wagner Group were sent to help Niger combat the Jihadist insurgents.[28]

Analysts identified three main objectives of Tchiani's internal policy: modernizing the army, promoting economic growth (including a lessened dependence on uranium through investments in agriculture, infrastructure and renewable energy), and implementing an anti-corruption agenda.[29]

In December 2024, Tchiani accused France and Nigeria of colluding with rebel groups to destabilize the Nigerien government, as well as accusing Nigeria of sabotaging the oil pipeline to Benin. Nigeria denied these allegations.[30]

In January 2025, according to the World Health Organization, Niger became the first African country and the fifth country worldwide to eradicate onchocerciasis (a goal it had already been working towards for several years prior to the coup).[31]

Tchiani was formally sworn in as president on 26 March 2025, for a five year term, and promoted to the rank of general.[32][33][34]

Economy

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Like before the coup d'état, the economic system is based upon planning but accords an important role to private enterprise. The three main policy objectives are the maintenance of national unity, the elevation of the living standards of the population, and the attainment of economic independence. The private sector of the economy consists partly of a multitude of small enterprises and partly of enterprises belonging to large French or international companies. [citation needed]

In October 2023, sanctions and the suspension of international aid from ECOWAS left Niger as one of the poorest countries in the world. Niger's governing junta announced at the start of the month a 40% cut in the 2023 budget due to "heavy sanctions imposed by international and regional organizations ... exposing the country to a major drop in external and internal revenue." Nigeria, a supplier of 71% of Niger's electricity prior to the coup, contributed to Niamey's crisis by halting its services. By October 2023, Niger's Nigelec state-owned utility company could only meet between a quarter and half of demand across the country.[35]

In February 2024, a new regulatory law was enacted to secure unrestricted access to state resources. Military spending is no longer subject to public procurement regulations. This has paved the way for faster processing of arms purchases, the use of mercenaries, and the alleged personal enrichment of the new rulers[who?].[36]

In June 2024, the military junta revoked the operating licence of French nuclear fuel producer Orano at one of the world's biggest uranium mines. Days later, it announced that the Imouraren mine had returned "to the state's public domain".[37]

His prime minister and finance minister, Ali Lamine Zeine was affiliated with the MNSD-Nassara, a party which advocates for liberal economic policies.[38][39][40][41][42]

Personal life

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Tchiani is married and has five children.[11] He is Muslim.[43]

Awards and honors

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Domestic

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Source:[44]

  • Grand Officer of the National Order of Niger [fr] (2021)
  • Commander of the National Order of Niger (2018)
  • Officer of the National Order of Niger (2010)
  • Knight of the National Order of Niger (2004)
  • Officer of the Merit of Niger [ru] (2001)

Foreign

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Notes

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  1. ↑ Arabic: عبد الرحمن تشياني, also spelled Tiani, especially in French-language news articles.

References

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  1. ↑ "Coup d'État au Niger: première apparition du général Tiani en tant que «président du CNSP»". RFI. 28 July 2023.
  2. ↑ "El general Tchiani se declara líder del Consejo de Transición tras el golpe de Estado en Níger". France 24. 28 July 2023.
  3. ↑ "Niger general Tchiani named head of transitional government after coup". Al Jazeera.
  4. 1 2 Aksar, Moussa; Balima, Boureima (28 July 2023). "Niger soldiers say President Bazoum's government has been removed". Reuters.
  5. 1 2 "Au Niger, des militaires putschistes ont renversé le président Mohamed Bazoum". BFMTV. 27 July 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 "Who is Omar Tchiani, leader of Niger's new military government?". Al Jazeera.
  7. 1 2 "رئيس النيجر يرفض الانقلاب الذي أعلنه عسكريون". DW. 27 July 2023.
  8. 1 2 "Niger soldiers declare coup on national TV". BBC. 26 July 2023.
  9. ↑ "Omar Tchiani: Who is the General spearheading Niger's coup?". APAnews.
  10. ↑ "Who is Omar Tchiani, leader of Niger's new military government?". Al Jazeera. 27 July 2023. Retrieved 17 May 2025. There was also speculation that this may have been because of the general's age, who is 62 [...]
  11. 1 2 3 "Biographie du Général de Brigade TIANI Abdourahamane". Studio Kalangou - Au rythme du Niger (in French). 29 July 2023. Retrieved 17 May 2025.
  12. ↑ Aksar, Moussa; Balima, Boureima (31 July 2023). "The Niger general who ousted a president he was meant to protect". Reuters. Archived from the original on 10 January 2025. Retrieved 17 May 2025. The insecurity was close to home for Tiani, who was born in 1964 in a small village in the Filingué region [...]
  13. 1 2 "Who is Omar Tchiani, the suspected brain behind Niger coup?". Aljazeera. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
  14. 1 2 3 "Niger's coup leader General Tchiani: The ex-UN peacekeeper who seized power". BBC. 10 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  15. 1 2 Daniel, Serge (28 July 2023). "Le général Tchiani, nouvel homme fort du Niger à l'épreuve du pouvoir" [General Tchiani, Niger's new strongman put to the test of power]. RFI (in French). Archived from the original on 30 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
  16. ↑ Moussa Aksar; Emelia Sithole-Matarise (29 July 2023). "Who is Niger's new leader, Abdourahamane Tiani?". Reuters. Archived from the original on 30 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
  17. ↑ "Five Things We Know About Niger's New Military Leader". Bloomberg.com. 29 July 2023. Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 30 July 2023.
  18. 1 2 "Niger coup: Abdourahmane Tchiani declares himself leader". BBC. 28 July 2023. Archived from the original on 28 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  19. ↑ "Niger's president vows democracy will prevail after mutinous soldiers detain him and declare a coup". AP News. 27 July 2023. Archived from the original on 27 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  20. ↑ "Niger army general declares himself country's new leader". Gulf News. 29 July 2023. Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  21. ↑ "Niger's General Abdourahamane Tchiani declared new leader following coup (state TV)". France 24. 28 July 2023. Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  22. ↑ "Niger general Tchiani named head of transitional government after coup". Al Jazeera. 28 July 2023. Archived from the original on 28 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  23. ↑ Obasi, Nnamdi (5 December 2023). "ECOWAS, Nigeria and the Niger Coup Sanctions: Time to Recalibrate | International Crisis Group". International Crisis Group. Retrieved 6 May 2026. Within days, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) announced a raft of sanctions on Niger, the strictest the bloc has ever imposed on an errant member state. Members of the fifteen-nation bloc [...] agreed to close all borders with Niger, suspend financial transactions and freeze the country's assets in external banks.
  24. ↑ "Niger coup leader Gen Tchiani promises to handover power in three years". 20 August 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2026. Niger's coup leader has promised to return the West African nation to civilian rule within three years. [...] Gen Tchiani also reiterated criticism of what he called the "illegal and inhumane" sanctions imposed by Ecowas on the landlocked country. [...] "Ecowas is not accepting any prolonged transition again in the region. They just have to get ready to hand over in the shortest possible time," Abdel-Fatau Musah, the bloc's commissioner for political affairs, peace and security, told the BBC.
  25. ↑ Asadu, Chinedu (24 February 2024). "West Africa bloc lifts coup sanctions on Niger in a new push for dialogue to resolve tensions". AP News. Retrieved 6 May 2026. West Africa's regional bloc known as ECOWAS said Saturday that it is lifting travel and economic sanctions imposed on Niger that were aimed at reversing last year's coup in the country [...]
  26. ↑ Asadu, Chinedu (24 November 2023). "A newly formed alliance between coup-hit countries in Africa's Sahel is seen as tool for legitimacy". AP News. Retrieved 6 May 2026. [...] Niger's junta leader, Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani held separate meetings Thursday with his Mali and Burkina Faso counterparts. During their meetings, the leaders pledged security and political collaborations under the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) [...]
  27. ↑ "Juntas and Moscow reshaping Sahel alliances – GIS Reports". 8 April 2026. Retrieved 6 May 2026. Following the countries' coordinated 2024 withdrawal from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), these three leaders charted a markedly different course from the previous cooperation with the West: a rupture with France, the U.S. and the EU, accompanied by a strategic realignment toward new partners, most notably Russia.
  28. ↑ Elidad, Addo (19 February 2024). "Shifting Sands: The Sahel's Pivot from Paris to Moscow". The Euroculturer. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
  29. ↑ Powelton, Frédéric (13 June 2024). "Portrait d'un président : Abdourahamane Tchiani du Niger". Sahel Intelligence. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
  30. ↑ Akinpelu, Yusuf (27 December 2024). "Nigeria denies colluding with France to destabilise Niger". BBC. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
  31. ↑ "WHO verifies Niger as the first country in the African Region to eliminate onchocerciasis". World Health Organization. 30 January 2025. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
  32. ↑ "Niger's junta leader cements his grip on power as he is sworn in as president". AP News. 26 March 2025. Retrieved 26 March 2025.
  33. ↑ "Niger coup leader Abdourahamane Tchiani sworn in as president for five years". www.bbc.com. 26 March 2025. Retrieved 31 March 2025.
  34. ↑ "Niger: Abdourahmane Tiani reaches the top - promoted to Army General and sworn in as President". ActuNiger (in French). 26 March 2025. Retrieved 5 April 2025.
  35. ↑ "World Bank, WFP Study: Niger's Coup Left Economy in Tatters". Voice of America. 30 October 2023.
  36. ↑ Tschörner, Lisa. "Came to Stay: Niger's Military Junta Consolidates its Power". Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP).
  37. ↑ "Niger putsch: How security and economic perceptions changed in a year - TRT Afrika". Niger putsch: How security and economic perceptions changed in a year.
  38. ↑ "Niger military promises elections". BBC. 21 February 2010.
  39. ↑ "Ali Lamine Zeine". Jeuneafrique. Archived from the original on 21 November 2006.
  40. ↑ "SITE DE LA PRESIDENCE DELA REPUBLIQUE DU NIGER". Presidence.ne.
  41. ↑ Boureima Hama; Fiacre Vidjingninou (24 February 2010). "Niger: la junte s'installe, appels à un retour rapide de la démocratie". La Presse.
  42. ↑ "Junta to run country until elections, promises new constitution". France 24. 21 February 2010.
  43. ↑ "Niger's transitional president Tchiani participates in mass prayer to mark end of Ramadan". Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  44. ↑ "Abdourahamane TchianI CV" (PDF). studiokalangou.org (in French). 2023. Retrieved 28 December 2025.
  45. ↑ "Distinction du Président de la République au Mali : Le Général d'Armée Abdourahamane Tiani élevé à la dignité de Grand-Croix de l'Ordre National du Mali". lesahel.org (in French). 24 December 2025. Retrieved 28 December 2025.
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