Henri-Marie Dondra

Henri-Marie Dondra
Prime Minister of the Central African Republic
In office
15 June 2021 – 7 February 2022
PresidentFaustin-Archange Touadéra
Preceded byFirmin Ngrébada
Succeeded byFélix Moloua
Minister of Finance and Budget
In office
11 April 2016 – 10 June 2021
PresidentFaustin-Archange Touadéra
Prime MinisterSimplice Sarandji
Firmin Ngrébada
Preceded byCélestin Yanendji
Succeeded byHervé Ndoba
Personal details
Born (1966-08-14) 14 August 1966
Bangui, Central African Republic
PartyUnité Républicaine
Other political
affiliations

Henri-Marie Dondra (born 14 August 1966) is a Central African politician who served as the Prime Minister of the Central African Republic from 15 June 2021 to 7 February 2022.[1]

Biography

Dondra was born 14 August 1966 in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.[2] He is married and has 5 children.[3][4]

Dondra completed his bachelor's degree (G2 series) at the Cardinal Malula University in Kinshasa from 1984 to 1985. He then obtained a General University Diploma (DEUG) in Law from the University of Bangui in 1988-1989, where he also did a Bachelor's degree in Private Law in 1989-1990.[4] He obtained a banking training diploma at the Banque Centrale Populaire in Casablanca (1990-1991), then received a Master's degree in Finance at the Catholic University of Lille and a diploma of specialized graduate studies (DESS) in finance at the International Polytechnic University of Benin in 2003.[4]

Dondra then worked at the Moroccan-Central African Bank and then in the African Guarantee and Economic Cooperation Fund (FAGACE) from 1997 onward, where he held several senior positions, including that of managing director starting in 2009.[5] He has also been president of the Professional Association of African Guarantee Institutions (APIGA) since 2014.[4]

Political career

Dondra planned to run in the 2015-2016 presidential election with his movement Les Réformateurs, but chose to support the candidacy of the eventual winner Faustin-Archange Touadéra.[6] He was appointed as Minister of Finance and Budget by Touadéra on 11 April 2016 and served that role until 10 June 2021,[7][8][9] being reappointed by Simplice Sarandji and Firmin Ngrébada.[10]

In 2019, President Touadéra created his own political party, the United Hearts Movement (MCU). Dondra joined the MCU and became its second national executive secretary, after Sarandji.[6] In the 2020 parliamentary elections, Dondra was elected MP for the first arrondissement of Bangui under the MCU.[11]

Prime minister

On 11 June he was named prime minister by the country's presidency the day after the resignation of Firmin Ngrebada.[9] This occurred as France had suspended its military cooperation and financial aid to the Central African Republic a few days before, accusing the government of complicity in an anti-French campaign orchestrated by Moscow.[11][9]

In early February 2022, Dondra was removed from his position and replaced by his economy minister Felix Moloua.[9][12] It has been suggested that his 2022 sacking was related to "tensions between pro-Russian and pro-French factions within the government", as Dondra was seen as more pro-French than his predecessor Firmin Ngrébada.[13]

Republican Unity party

On November 26 2023, Henri-Marie Dondra announced his intentions of starting a new political party, the Republican Unity Party (French: Unité Républicaine, also known as UNIR), 21 months since his removal from the position of prime minister.[14] The party was officially created on December 5 2023; it is self-described as politically centrist and reformist, voicing support for initiatives to foster peace, social cohesion and entrepreneurship.[15][16][17][18]

2025 Central African general election

UNIR officially endorsed Dondra's presidential bid for the 2025 Central African general election in May 2025.[19] Dondra submitted his candidacy on October 8,[20] but was not approved until November 14 due to the incumbent prime minister Faustin-Archange Touadéra accusing him of holding Congolese citizenship.[15][21] Two of Dondra's brothers were arrested on March 19, leading Dondra to assert the "gradual assassination of our democracy".[19][22][23][24]

The election was held on November 28; according to official results, Dondra received 3.19% of the votes, the 3rd most behind the Touadéra of the Union for Central African Renewal and Anicet-Georges Dologuélé of the United Hearts Movement.[25] Dondra accused the elections of being fraudulent and demanded an annulment of the results on behalf of the UNIR,[25] but later ceded the election.[26]

References

  1. ↑ "Central Africa PM 'fired', replaced by economy minister". The Guardian. Lagos, Nigeria. 7 February 2022. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
  2. ↑ "FAGACE's Governing Bodies Renew the Mandate of General Manager Henri-Marie Dondra". FAGACE (African Guarantee and Economic Cooperation Fund). 4 June 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  3. ↑ "Ministre des Finances et du Budget". www.gouv.cf (in French). Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Le CV du Ministre". www.finances-budget.cf (in French). Archived from the original on 16 February 2019. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  5. ↑ "Henri-Marie Dondra rempile à la tête du FAGACE" [Henri-Marie Dondra is returning to head FAGACE]. Financial Afrik (in French). 7 June 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  6. 1 2 "Centrafrique : Henri-marie Dondra, un Bras de Fer Dans un Gang de Velours" [Central African Republic: Henri-Marie Dondra, an Iron Man in a Velvet Gang]. Lepotentielcentrafricain.com (in French). 22 June 2021. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  7. ↑ "Les Anciens Ministres". Ministère des Finances et du Budget. Archived from the original on 16 February 2026.
  8. ↑ "Centrafrique: les trois messages du nouveau Premier ministre Henri-Marie Dondra" [Central African Republic: the three messages of the new Prime Minister Henri-Marie Dondra]. RFI. 15 June 2021.
  9. 1 2 3 4 "Henri Marie Dondra named Central African Republic prime minister". Al Jazeera. 11 June 2021.
  10. ↑ Pabandji, Pacôme (9 December 2019). "Centrafrique : Henri-Marie Dondra, inamovible ministre des Finances de Faustin-Archange Touadéra" [Central African Republic: Henri-Marie Dondra, irremovable Minister of Finance of Faustin-Archange Touadéra]. JeuneAfrique.com (in French). Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  11. 1 2 "Centrafrique: Henri-Marie Dondra nommé Premier ministre" [Central African Republic: Henri-Marie Dondra appointed Prime Minister]. AFP (in French). 12 June 2021. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  12. ↑ "Félix Moloua nommé Premier ministre en Centrafrique" [Félix Moloua appointed Prime Minister in the Central African Republic]. AFP (in French). 7 February 2022. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  13. ↑ Coffey, David (9 February 2022). "Central African PM replaced amid tensions over Russia, France rival factions". RFI. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
  14. ↑ Rédaction, La (26 November 2023). "Henri-Marie Dondra: A Comeback to Central African Politics". cemac-eco.finance. Archived from the original on 14 July 2025. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
  15. 1 2 Lawal, Shola. "Central African Republic election: Who's running and what's at stake?". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  16. ↑ "Central African Republic: Report of the Secretary-General". United Nations Security Council. 15 February 2024. p. 1. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
  17. ↑ Sango, Ndjoni (27 November 2023). "RCA: UNIR , la naissance d'un nouveau parti dans le paysage politique national" [RCA: UNIR, the birth of a new party in the national political landscape] (in French). Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  18. ↑ "Central African Republic - Presidential elections : two former Prime Ministers in the running". Africa24 TV (in French). 10 October 2025. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  19. 1 2 "Six Candidates Challenge C.Africa's President Touadera". Agence France Presse. 23 December 2025. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  20. ↑ Djiko, Edda Lotine (8 October 2025). "Henri-Marie Dondra, candidat à l'élection présidentielle de décembre 2025". Radio Ndeke Luka (in French). Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  21. ↑ "Seven Candidates in the Presidential Race in the Central African Republic". afrocen.org. 16 November 2025. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
  22. ↑ "Central African Republic: Report of the Secretary-General". docs.un.org. 10 October 2025. p. 7. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  23. ↑ "Central African Republic - Ex-PM Dondra's two brothers arrested amid settling of scores". Africa Intelligence. 27 March 2025. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  24. ↑ "En Centrafrique, deux frères d'Henri-Marie Dondra ont été interpellés" [In the Central African Republic, two brothers of Henri-Marie Dondra were arrested]. AFP (in French). Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  25. 1 2 "Central African Republic President Touadera wins re-election, results show". RFI. 6 January 2026. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
  26. ↑ "Centrafrique: Henri-Marie Dondra, arrivé 3e à la présidentielle, renonce à ses recours devant le Conseil constitutionnel" [Central African Republic: Henri-Marie Dondra, who came third in the presidential election, withdraws his appeals before the Constitutional Council]. RFI (in French). 16 January 2026. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
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