The first president of the Comoro Islands was Ahmed Abdallah. He was born on June 12, 1919 at Dimoni on the island of Anjouan in the Comoro archipelago. The Comoro Islands consist of four major islands located in the Indian Ocean. In 1843 the French … Read MoreAhmed Abdallah (1919-1989)
Gabriel Léon M’ba was the first President of Gabon. He was born in Libreville, Gabon, French Equatorial Africa on February 9, 1902, and was a member of the dominant Fang ethnic group. Both of his parents had some western education. His father was a small … Read MoreLéon M’ba (1902-1967)
Sylvanus Olympio was the first president of Togo and also served as prime minister. He was born on September 6, 1902, in Lome, Togoland, then a German colony. Olympio’s grandfather had emigrated from Brazil in the mid-19th century. Young Sylvanus was one of 30 children. … Read MoreSylvanus Olympio (1902-1963)
World-renowned painter Beauford Delaney was born on December 30, 1901, in Knoxville, Tennessee, to Samuel Delaney, a barber and a Methodist minister, and Delia Johnson Delaney, a seamstress born of slave parents. They had ten children. Two of the sons were painters, including Joseph Delaney. … Read MoreBeauford Delaney (1901-1979)
Philibert Tsiranana was the first president of the Malagasy Republic (now Madagascar). He was born on October 18, 1912, in Ambarikorano, Sofia Region, Madagascar. His parents were Madiomanana and Fisadoha Tsiranana. They were from the Tsimihety ethnic group and were cattle ranchers. As a young … Read MorePhilibert Tsiranana (1912-1978)
Ahmadou Ahidjo was the first president of Cameroon. Ahidjo was born on August 24, 1924, at Garoua in northern Cameroon, which was a French colony at the time. His father was a local Fulani chief. He was raised as a Muslim and was sent to … Read MoreAhmadou Ahidjo (1924-1989)
Paul Biya has been President of Cameroon since 1982. Biya was born on February 13, 1933, at Mvomeka’a, Meyomessala Subdivision, Dja-et-Lobo Division, South Region. He is the son of Etienne Mvondo Assam and Anastasie Eyenga Elle. Biya attended schools in Cameroon, graduating from the Lycee … Read MorePaul Biya (1933- )
Ahmed Ben Bella was a leader of the Algerian War of Independence who became the first Prime Minister, and later, the first President of independent Algeria. Ben Bella was born in 1916 in Maghnia (Marnia), Oran, Algeria (then a French colony), the son of a … Read MoreAhmed Ben Bella (1916-2012)
Postmodern Composer, pianist, and conductor Adolphus Cunningham Hailstork III, who has penned more than 250 works, was born on April 17, 1941, in Rochester, New York, to Lora Hailstork and Adolphus Cunningham Hailstork Jr. However, he was reared in Albany, New York. He has one … Read MoreAdolphus Cunningham Hailstork III (1941- )
Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno is the Chairman of the Transitional Military Council of Chad (de facto President). Déby is the son of the former President of Chad, Idriss Déby. He was born on April 4, 1984, in the capital city of N’Djamena and is known … Read MoreMahamat Idriss Déby Itno
(1984- )
