The President of Burundi Offered Practical Examples that Other African Despots Follow : Africa-Wide - Influential African of the Year

The most significant shaper of events on the African continent in 2016 did not inspire betterment for his country and region, but rather the reverse. He held up an example that, rather than allow for peoples to achieve social justice and peace, showed fellow authoritarians how to manipulate their nations' political systems to stay in power longer. In so doing, Burundi's president, who violated a peace agreement that ended his country's nightmare civil war, and in so doing laid the groundwork for the next civil war, further destabilised Africa's most unstable region and gave encouragement to anti-democratic forces across the continent.