Paul Toungui (born 7 September 1950"Who's Who", Africa Intelligence, ''Gabon: Les Hommes de Pouvoir'', number 4, 5 March 2002 .) is a

Gabon Gabon ( ; ), officially the Gabonese Republic (), is a country on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, on the equator, bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo to the east and south, and ...

ese politician who served in the government of Gabon from 1990 to 2012. He was

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

from 1991 to 1994, Minister of Mines, Energy, and Oil from 1994 to 2002, Minister of State for the Economy and Finance from 2002 to 2008, and finally Minister of State for Foreign Affairs from 2008 to 2012.

Political career

Toungai was born in Okonja, located in

Haut-Ogooué Province Haut-Ogooué is the southeasternmost of Gabon's nine provinces. It is named after the Ogooué River. It covers an area of . The provincial capital is Franceville. One of its primary industries is mining, with manganese, gold and uranium bein ...

in southeastern Gabon,"Paul Toungui Ministre de l'Économie, des Finances, du Budget et de la Privatisation"
''Jeune Afrique'', 5 January 2003 . and studied mathematics, earning a degree in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. He was Director-General of the Institute of the Economy and Finance from 1983 to 1990. Standing as a candidate of the

Gabonese Democratic Party The Gabonese Democratic Party (, PDG) is a political party in Gabon. It was the dominant political party in Gabonese politics from 1961 until 2023, when it was deposed in a coup d'état against President Ali Bongo. It was also the sole legal ...

(PDG) in the 1990 parliamentary election, he was elected to the

National Assembly of Gabon The National Assembly () is the lower house of the Parliament of Gabon. It has 143 members, elected by Two round system The status of the Parliament is unclear following the coup d'état four days after the 2023 general election. Legisla ...

. In 1991, he joined the government as Minister of Finance and the Budget, holding that post until March 1994. From March 1994 to January 2002, Toungui was Minister of Mines, Energy and Oil; he was assigned additional responsibility for hydraulic resources in January 1999, and in January 2001 he was promoted to the rank of Minister of State. He was re-elected to the National Assembly as a PDG candidate in the 1996 parliamentary election and the 2001 parliamentary election. Following the latter election, Toungui was made Minister of State for the Economy, Finance, the Budget, and Privatization on 27 January 2002. In the December 2006 parliamentary election, he was elected to the National Assembly as the PDG candidate in Okonja constituency. After nearly seven years as Finance Minister, Toungui was instead appointed as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Cooperation, La Francophonie, and Regional Integration on 7 October 2008."Gabon: Laure Olga Gondjout passe le témoin à Paul Toungui aux Affaires Etrangères"
, Gabonews, 9 October 2008 . He succeeded Laure Olga Gondjout as Foreign Minister on 9 October. After President

Omar Bongo Omar Bongo Ondimba (born Albert-Bernard Bongo; 30 December 1935 – 8 June 2009) was a Gabonese politician who was the second president of Gabon from 1967 until Death and state funeral of Omar Bongo, his death in 2009. A member of the Gabonese De ...

died in June 2009 and his son

Ali Bongo Ali Bongo Ondimba (born Alain-Bernard Bongo; 9 February 1959) also known as Ali Ben Bongo is a Gabonese former politician and dictator who was the third president of Gabon from 2009 until he was deposed in a 2023 Gabonese coup d'état, coup in 2 ...

was elected to succeed him, Toungui was retained as Foreign Minister in Ali Bongo's first government, appointed on 17 October 2009. He kept his position despite a wave of dismissals of other long-serving ministers and key officials. Having survived Ali Bongo's initial reworking of the government, he was its longest-serving minister, with nearly two decades of continuous experience. He was dismissed from the government on 28 February 2012."Gabon: formation d'un nouveau gouvernement"
Agence France-Presse, 28 February 2012 .

Personal life

Toungui is the son-in-law of Omar Bongo, who was President of Gabon from 1967 to 2009; he married Bongo's daughter, Pascaline Bongo,Jean-Dominique Geslin
"La méthode Bongo"
''Jeune Afrique'', 5 January 2003 . in 1995.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toungui, Paul Living people Ministers for foreign affairs of Gabon Finance ministers of Gabon Members of the National Assembly of Gabon Gabonese Democratic Party politicians 1950 births 21st-century Gabonese people Bongo family 21st-century Gabonese politicians