Mokgweetsi Masisi

Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe Masisi, the current President of Botswana, was born on July 21, 1961. He has been actively involved in Botswana's political landscape and has held various significant positions.

In 2002 Masisi married Neo Maswabi, an accountant who later worked for the United Nations in New York and in Addis Ababa. They have a daughter.

Masisi sought the nomination of the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) to stand in Moshupa constituency in the 2004 general election, but was unsuccessful.

Masisi obtained the BDP nomination for the Moshupa constituency prior to the 2009 general election and won the seat.

After a little more than a year as an assistant minister, Masisi was appointed as Minister for Presidential Affairs and Public Administration in January 2011.

Masisi was appointed as Minister of Education and Skills Development on 28 October 2014.

Mokgweetsi Masisi served as the 8th Vice President of Botswana from November 12, 2014, to April 1, 2018. His role as the Vice President was significant in the country's political landscape.

Masisi was appointed as the Chancellor of the University of Botswana on July 5, 2017, following the death of former President Quett Masire.

Masisi was sworn in as the 5th President of Botswana on April 1, 2018.

Masisi received an honorary doctorate from the University of Botswana on October 13, 2018.

In October 2019, Masisi was re-elected president after the BDP faced the biggest threat to its unity in more than five decades, following Khama's move to the opposition.

Masisi responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by declaring a state of emergency on March 31, 2020, allowing him to rule by decree for a period of 18 months.

On 3 January 2022, it was announced that Masisi was in mandatory self-isolation after testing positive for COVID-19 during routine testing. Vice-President Slumber Tsogwane would assume the president's responsibilities while Masisi was in isolation.