Marguerite Bukuru

Marguerite Bukuru
Minister of Social Action, Human Rights and Women's Empowerment
Minister of Public Service
Personal details
Born(1955-02-12)12 February 1955
Gisagara-Gasunu, Ruanda-Urundi
Died26 August 2023(2023-08-26) (aged 68)
Nairobi, Kenya
Alma materUniversity of Burundi
Occupation
  • Politician
  • civil servant

Marguerite Bukuru (12 February 1955 – 26 August 2023) was a Burundian politician and civil servant who served as Minister of Social Action, Human Rights and Women's Empowerment and Minister of Public Service. She worked as a United Nations official, as well as a court of appeals judge.

Biography

Bukuru was born on 12 February 1955, in Gisagara-Gasunu in the Commune of Giheta.[1] Her parents encouraged her to get an education in defiance of Burundian social norms, and she even served as a class delegate in school.[1] She then attended the University of Burundi Faculty of Law and presented her thesis The Rights and Obligations of Marriage in Burundian Civil Law.[1] During the late-1970s, she worked as a teacher at primary and secondary schools.[1]

Bukuru worked as a legal advisor for Minister for Women's Questions Euphrasie Kandeke, where she worked to find discriminatory laws to amend and became inspired to engage in women's rights.[2] After being appointed director-general of the Ministry of Women's Affairs, she was eventually appointed Minister of Social Action, Human Rights and Women's Empowerment.[1] She also served as Minister of Public Service, and she was a magistrate judge before serving in the Ngozi Court of Appeal.[1]

Bukuru also worked as a United Nations official, including as a human rights officer for several United Nations peacekeeping missions, including MINUSCA, the United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire, and the United Nations–African Union Mission in Darfur.[1] Other UN duties she was involved in was consultancy in justice-related areas such as transitional justice and truth commissions.[1] She was committed to women's rights and led several seminars at the World Conference on Women, 1995.[1] Mireille Mizero called her "one of [Burundi]'s most remarkable daughters".[1]

Bukuru was married to her husband for more than 42 years, and they had four children and five grandchildren.[1] She was known within her family as Mama Nadège.[1]

Bukuru died on 26 August 2023 at Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi. She was 68.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Mizero, Mireille (1 September 2023). "Hommages à Madame Bukuru Marguerite (Maggy)". IWACU. Retrieved 25 January 2026. Cite error: Unknown parameter "<ref" in <ref> tag; supported parameters are dir, follow, group, name (see the help page).
  2. ↑ Bukuru, Marguerite. "My take, your take: Women's rights in Burundi, then and now". UN Women – Africa (Interview). Archived from the original on 17 September 2025. Retrieved 25 January 2026.
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