Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema is the current head of state of Gabon, serving as the transitional president since August 2023 but formally sworn in as president in May 2025 following an election. Born on March 3, 1975, in Ngouoni, Haut-Ogooué Province, Gabon, his rise to power marked the end of over five decades of Bongo family rule in the Central African nation.
Oligui Nguema’s early life saw him pursue a military career, following in his father’s footsteps. He trained at the prestigious Meknes Royal Military Academy in Morocco. Early in his career he served as an aide-de-camp to President Omar Bongo, the patriarch of the Bongo dynasty, until Bongo’s death in 2009. After Ali Bongo Ondimba succeeded his father, Oligui Nguema was sidelined, serving as a military attaché at Gabonese embassies in Morocco and Senegal for about ten years.
Nguema made a significant return to prominence in 2018, replacing President Ali Bongo’s half-brother as the chief of intelligence for the Republican Guard, the elite unit responsible for the President’s security. Within six months, he was promoted to head the Republican Guard. During his tenure, he implemented reforms aimed at improving the unit’s effectiveness and the welfare of its personnel.
On August 30, 2023, just hours after the announcement of disputed presidential election results that favored Ali Bongo, General Oligui Nguema led a military coup that annulled the election outcome and placed President Bongo under house arrest. Nguema was subsequently named the transitional president by the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions (CTRI). In his inaugural address on September 4, 2023, he pledged to hold “free, transparent” elections and announced plans for a new government, electoral legislation, a new penal code, and a referendum on a new constitution.
As head of state, Oligui Nguema has outlined several governing policies and priorities. He has pledged to restore dignity to the Gabonese people and root out corruption. Key policy areas include:
Economic Diversification: Reducing Gabon’s heavy reliance on oil (which accounts for about 38% of GDP) by focusing on other sectors including agriculture and mining (e.g., the Bilinga iron mine project) to create jobs and ensure economic independence.
Infrastructure Development: Launching high-profile construction projects and improving essential services like energy and water supply.
Good Governance and Reforms: Implementing new electoral legislation, proposing a new penal code, and undertaking a referendum on a new constitution. The new constitution, adopted in 2024, sets a renewable seven-year presidential term and allows military members to run in elections.
Tackling Youth Unemployment: Implementing policies aimed at improving citizens’ daily lives and addressing high youth unemployment.
Brice Nguema (Public Domain)
In his personal life, Brice Oligui Nguema is married to Zita Nyangue Oligui. Details regarding children are not specific, other than a general reference to him being “married with children” from one official source.
Oligui Nguema ran for president under the “Rally of Builders” platform and was elected with over 90% of the vote in April 2025, solidifying his mandate and formally transitioning from interim to elected president.
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