10 Coups In Five Years: Military takeovers in African countries (Full List)

The military takeover in Guinea-Bissau brings the number of coups on the turbulent continent of Africa in five years to 10.

Here is a recap of the African countries were coups have happened in the last 10 years:

Mali

Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita is overthrown by five army colonels in August 2020.

In May 2021, the Malian military took over from the civilian leaders of an interim government.

Colonel Assimi Goita, who led both coups, is sworn in as transitional president.

After promising to hold elections in February 2024, the military put them off indefinitely, pointing to the jihadist violence plaguing the country.

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In July 2025, Goita approves a law granting himself a five-year presidential mandate, renewable without election.

Since September, jihadists launch a fuel blockade, weakening the ruling junta.

Guinea

On September 5, 2021, mutinous troops led by Lieutenant-Colonel Mamady Doumbouya took over in Guinea, arresting President Alpha Conde.

Doumbouya, in early November 2025, submits his candidacy ahead of the December 28 elections that are meant to restore constitutional order.

Sudan

After weeks of tension between the military and civilian leaders who had shared power since the ousting of dictator Omar al-Bashir, the armed forces led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan staged a new coup on October 25, 2021.

Since April 2023, war has raged between the regular armed forces led by Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, led by his former deputy Mohammed Hamdan Daglo.

The conflict has so far killed tens of thousands of people and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

Burkina Faso

Burkina Faso underwent two military coups in 2022.

In January that year, mutinous soldiers led by Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba arrested President Roch Marc Christian Kabore.

Then, in September, army officers announced they had dismissed Damiba. Captain Ibrahim Traore becomes the transitional president, but the elections he promised do not materialise. In May 2024, the junta authorises him to stay for another five years in a country wracked by Islamist violence.

Niger

On July 26, 2023, members of the presidential guard overthrew Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum, elected in 2021. General Abdourahamane Tiani, head of the presidential guard, takes over.

In March 2025, the junta extends by at least five years its transitional leadership of the country, which is plagued by jihadist violence.

Gabon

In Gabon, ruled for 55 years by the Bongo family, army officers on August 30, 2023, overthrew President Ali Bongo Ondimba, less than an hour after he is declared winner of an election the opposition says was fraudulent.

General Brice Oligui Nguema is named the transitional president.

In April 2025, he is elected president with 94.85 percent of the vote. He is sworn in on the basis of a new constitution approved by referendum during the transition.

Madagascar

Colonel Michael Randrianirina (C) from the mutinied CAPSAT military contingent speaks to an audience in Antananarivo on October 16, 2025. (Photo by Mamyrael / AFP)

In October 2025, the military ousts Madagascar’s president Andry Rajoelina and takes power following weeks of “Gen Z” anti-government protests.

Army colonel Michael Randrianirina is sworn in as Madagascar’s new president, promising elections within 18 to 24 months.

AFP