Keypoints:
- Parliament removes presidential age cap
- Move paves way for Guelleh’s sixth term
- Lawmakers cite stability amid regional turmoil
DJIBOUTI’S parliament has voted unanimously to remove the presidential age limit from the constitution, paving the way for President Ismail Omar Guelleh, who is 77, to run for a sixth term in office. The constitutional amendment was formally ratified on Sunday, Parliament Speaker Dileita Mohamed Dileita told AFP.
‘The National Assembly ratified the removal of the age limit today, so it is official,’ Dileita confirmed following the vote.
The change eliminates a previous restriction that barred anyone over the age of 75 from contesting the presidency. It comes just over a year before the next election, scheduled for April 2026, in which Guelleh is now eligible to stand once again.
Lawmakers cite need for stability
According to Speaker Dileita, the amendment was introduced to preserve ‘the stability of the country in a troubled region, the Horn of Africa, with Somalia, Ethiopia, and Eritrea’.
The motion was first passed last week before being approved by the president and returned to parliament for final ratification. The ruling Union for the Presidential Majority, which dominates the legislature, supported the measure unanimously.
Guelleh, in power since 1999, has long maintained a firm grip on Djiboutian politics. In the 2021 election, he won 97 percent of the vote, extending a tenure that has made him one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders.
Strategic hub in a tense region
Djibouti, a nation of about one million people, holds a uniquely strategic position at the mouth of the Red Sea. It controls access to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, one of the world’s busiest maritime trade routes linking Africa to the Middle East.
The country also hosts several foreign military bases, including those of the United States, France, China, Japan, and Italy, making it a focal point for global powers seeking influence in the Horn of Africa.
Guelleh succeeded Hassan Gouled Aptidon, Djibouti’s founding president, in 1999 after serving as his chief of staff for more than two decades.
With the constitutional amendment now in effect, all eyes will be on whether Guelleh confirms his candidacy for the 2026 presidential race — a move that would extend his rule into a third decade.
