Top 5 Oldest Heads of State in the World Still in Office!



The exercise of the office of President of the Republic is an activity that involves a lot of hassle. So you have to be relatively young to face it. However, we realize that some presidents are very old, but still cling to the most demanding office in the world. We invite you to discover in this article the top 8 of the oldest presidents still in office.


Béji Caïd Essebsi (Tunisia, 91 years old)


Béji Caïd Essebsi was born on November 29, 2006 in Sidi Bou Saïd. He is a Tunisian lawyer and statesman. The son of a farmer, the current president of Tunisia received his secondary education at Sadiki College. He then studied law in Paris and became vice-president of the Association of North African Muslim Students there.

He was also an active member of the resistance against the French protectorate. After his license he returned to the land of his ancestors to practice the profession of lawyer. After the independence of his country, Béji Caïd Essebsi entered the political sphere by becoming the director of national security. Later he won the post of Assistant Secretary of State for the Interior to Minister Taïeb Mehiri. The latter died in 1965 and Béji Caïd Essebsi replaced him.

In 1969, he was elected deputy by the constituency of Tunis and left the government. The following year, he was appointed Ambassador to France. He resigned from this post a few months later. In 1981, he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs. He later left that post and became Ambassador again, but in West Germany this time.

In 2012, the emblematic figure of Tunisian politics founded his own party (Nidaa Tounes) in order to rally the opposition. He will lead this party to victory in the legislative elections of 2014. In the process, he himself won the presidential election against outgoing President Moncef Marzouki. Beji Caid Essebsi is today the oldest head of state still in office.

Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jabir al-Sabah (Kuwait, 89 years old)


Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jabir al-Sabah is the current Emir of Kuwait. He was born on June 17, 1929. The strongman from Kuwait began politics for many years. For 40 years, Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jabir al-Sabah was Minister of Foreign Affairs (1963 to 2003). In July 2003 he became Prime Minister. This adventure will last 3 years before the eminent politician becomes president.

Indeed, for health reasons, his predecessor, Sheikh Saad al-Abdallah al-Sabah al-Salim was dismissed by the National Assembly. On January 29, 2006, the same assembly officially confirmed that Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jabir al-Sabah is now the Emir of Kuwait. For over 12 years, he has ruled Kuwait. He is 89 years old and it is not yet known when this great man will step down from power.

Paul Biya (Cameroon, 85)


Born February 13, 1933 in Mvokema’a, Paul Barthélemy Biya’a Bi Mvondo is the current President of Cameroon. He was born to Etienne Mvondo Assam and Anastasie Eyenga Ellé. His father was a catechist and directed him to the Catholic school in Nden and then to the seminary in Edea. But the future president abandons the path that his progenitor wanted for him. He returned to continue his studies at the General Leclerc high school in Yaoundé. He then continued in Paris. There he studied at the University of the Sorbonne.

In 1961, he obtained a license in public law from the Institute of Political Studies. Paul Biya then returns to the country to marry Jeanne Irène Biya. In 1962, under President Ahmadou Ahidjo, he became responsible for missions at the presidency of the republic. Then, he was appointed secretary general to the presidency. On June 30, 1975, the giant of Cameroonian politics was appointed Prime Minister by President Ahmadou Ahidjo. After the latter’s resignation on November 4, 1982, Paul Biya became president. He will be democratically elected in 1984 and several other times. Paul Biya is now 85 years old and has been President of Cameroon for almost 36 years.

Reuven Rivlin (Israel, 79)

President of the State of Israel is Yosef Yael Rivlin on September 9, 1939 in Jerusalem. He comes from a Jewish family and is a descendant of Gaon de Vilna’s disciples. The first citizen of the State of Israel began to build his life by going through the military service. He then studied law at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He graduated from it and served as a major before becoming a lawyer. But the Israeli prodigy had political ambitions.

Indeed, in 1988, he decided to venture into politics. The same year, he managed to be elected deputy under the colors of the Knesset (a nationalist party located to the right of the Israeli political spectrum). In 2001, he was appointed Minister of Communications and also Speaker of the Knesset in 2003. Later in 2007, Reuven Rivlin tried his hand at the presidential election.

But he was unfortunately beaten by Shimon Peres and withdrew his candidacy. In 2009, he took over the leadership of the Knesset presidency and once again became a leading figure on the Israeli political scene. He ran again in the 2014 presidential elections. He was eventually elected and became the tenth President of the State of Israel.

Currently, Reuven Rivlin is still President of Israel at 79 years old.

Sergio Mattarella (Italy, 77)


Sergio Mattarella, the current president of Italy, is the fourth child of lawyer Bernado Mattarella. He was born on July 23, 1941 in Palermo, Sicily. The man’s beginning in politics dates back to 1980. A few months after the assassination of his brother Piersanti Mattarella, the current President of Italy embarked on a political career.

First, he begins to be a member of the Christian Democracy (DC). Then, he sat in the Chamber of Deputies for seven legislatures between 1983 and 2008. The Italian virtuoso gradually evolved on his political momentum.

In 1998 Sergio Mattarella was appointed vice-president of the cabinet in the first government of Massimo D’Alema. The latter charged him with the defense portfolio a year later. With the prerogatives of this function, it abolishes compulsory military service in Italy. He then held various parliamentary functions before ending his political career in 2008. In 2011, the parliament considered him in his dimension as a former professor of law elected judge at the Constitutional Court.

In January 2015, Sergio Mattarella became President of the Italian Republic elected in the fourth round of the ballot. Elected by 665 voters out of 991, he succeeds Giorgio Napolitano and becomes the first Italian Head of State to come from Sicily.

as my