Ranked! Top 10 Most Heavily Protected African Presidents & Their Most Expensive Armored Security Cars

By Frank Kamuntu

Most presidents have tight security because they are high-profile individuals who are responsible for the governance and well-being of their country and its citizens. As such, they are vulnerable to various security threats, including terrorism, political violence, and assassination attempts.

African presidents often travel frequently, both domestically and internationally especially internationally, which makes them even more vulnerable to security threats. As a result, extensive security measures, including physical protection, intelligence gathering, and surveillance, are put in place to ensure their safety and that of their entourage.

Top 10 Most Protected African Presidents in 2022.

10. Mamadou Doumbouya (Guinea)

On September 5, 2021, a coup d’état orchestrated by Mamadou Doumbouya resulted in the overthrow of Alpha Condé, who had served as president before. He served in the French Legion in the past and is now a member of the Guinean Special Forces Group. On the day of the coup, Doumbouya launched a broadcast on state television announcing that his side had abolished the government and the constitution. He said that this step was taken immediately after the coup. On October 1, 2021, Doumbouya took the oath of office as the nation’s temporary president.

With his background as a military commander and his current position as President of Guinea, he has a solid understanding of the many aspects of national security. When he does choose to travel by land, he does not ride in particularly expensive types of vehicles. On the ground, he rides in Humvees, while in the air, he uses helicopters. Doumbouya has surrounded himself with a large number of bodyguards, and although his security detail may not be as refined as that of some of the other people on our list, his men are constantly on high alert in terms of their readiness for combat.

9. Former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta

Uhuru Kenyatta is a former President of Kenya. Uhuru served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Gatundu South during the period beginning in 2002 and ending in 2013. In addition to his role as Vice Prime Minister, which he held from 2008 to 2013, he was elected President of Kenya in the same year.

With 54% of the vote in the general elections held in August 2017, Uhuru was able to secure re-election as President of Kenya for a second and final term. The victory was announced publicly on a nationwide television network. The election was ruled unlawful by the court on September 1st, 2017, and the court ordered a new presidential election to take place within the next sixty days, starting from the day the judgement was issued.

On October 26, a runoff election for the presidency was conducted, and he emerged victorious with 39.03% of the vote.

While president, Kenyatta was transported about on an armoured land cruiser, ten high-speed motorbikes, seven high-speed Toyota SUVs, a Mercedez Benz X-class, and a Range Rovers. More than 10 heavy people made up his security detail, which he called his entourage.

In the list of African leaders who are afforded the highest level of protection, he occupied the ninth spot.

8. Paul Biya (Cameroon)

Since his election on November 6, 1982, Paul Biya has served as the President of Cameroon. He is the world’s longest-standing non-royal leader, the oldest head of state in Africa, and the continent’s longest-lasting president. He is also the second-longest serving president in Africa’s history.

After winning the disputed presidential election of 1992 with 40% of the single-ballot vote, he was re-elected with big percentages in 1997, 2004, 2011, and 2018. In 2018, he was re-elected with an even larger majority. On each of these times, lawmakers from the opposing party and governments from the West have asserted that election irregularities and fraud took place.

There is information from a variety of trustworthy sources indicating that he did not win the elections in 1992 and that the elections that followed were plagued by extensive fraud.

His dictatorship receives support from France, Cameroon’s former colonial power, in the form of arms supplies and military training for the country’s armed forces. In addition, France is Cameroon’s most significant investor from a foreign country, second only to the United States of America.

In the meanwhile, he has ruled the nation for the last four decades. He travels in heavily fortified Range Rover Sentinels that each cost around $500,000 to purchase. While attending important events, he travels in a heavily guarded limousine. His motorcade is one of the most secure in all of Africa; it is comprised of high-speed land cruisers and Mercedes Benz vehicles; and he is carefully protected by a large company of elite bodyguards. Paul Biya is the President of Cameroon.

On several other occasions, he is escorted by a group of bodyguards on horses in an entourage.

7. Paul Kagame (Rwanda)

Paul Kagame is a prominent figure in Rwandan politics and a veteran of the country’s military. Since he was elected in the year 2000, he has served as the fourth and current President of Rwanda. Kagame commanded the Rwandan Patriotic Front in the past, which was an Uganda-based rebel force that invaded Rwanda in 1990. The Rwandan Patriotic Front was both a party to the conflict that took place during the Rwandan Civil War and the armed force that put an end to the genocide that took place in Rwanda.

Despite the fact that he has been in power in Rwanda for more than 22 years, he is still considered to be one of the few leaders in Africa who is held in high regard. The majority of Kagame’s compatriots see him as their country’s most prominent leader.

Because of his involvement in contentious issues, Paul is also one of the few African presidents who are not afraid to speak his mind. He was one of the most protected African presidents despite having to beef up his security to meet the requirements.

The armoured Range Rover Sentinels that Kagame travels in each cost half a million dollars. Because of the qualities of this vehicle, it is difficult for his automobile to sustain a direct strike. The convoy that follows Paul Kagame includes a number of security motorbikes, high-speed Mercedes-Benz vehicles, Land Cruisers, and a large number of bodyguards encircling him on all sides.

6. Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (Egypt)

Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is a former Egyptian military commander and politician who has held the position of President of Egypt since 2014, making him the country’s sixth and current leader. Throughout the years 2012 and 2013, Sisi was Egypt’s Defense Minister, and from 2010 and 2012, he was Egypt’s Director of Military Intelligence. Sisi served as Egypt’s Deputy Prime Minister from 2013 to 2014. In 2014, he took his retirement from the Egyptian military after serving as a general.

The Egyptian president has one of the highest levels of security of any African leader. When it comes to his personal safety, he does not give any space for mistakes despite the fact that he personally runs the nation.

Likewise, his presidential automobile is a Mercedes S-class with a unique black number plate, and the fact that his nation has one of the greatest military forces on the continent is enough to assure him of it.

When Abdel Fattah is seen in public, he is escorted by more than ten bodyguards who have received specialized training.

His motorcade is made up of a number of security motorbikes, high-speed armoured Mercedes-Benz vehicles, Land Cruisers, and a large number of members of special forces.

5. Cyril Ramaphosa (South African)

Cyril Ramaphosa is a South African businessman and politician. He has served as the president of the African National Congress since 2017, in addition to taking office as the fifth democratically elected president of South Africa in 2018. Ramaphosa was born in South Africa.

Ramaphosa formerly held the positions of head of the National Planning commission, deputy president under President Jacob Zuma, and secretary general to Nelson Mandela when he was president of the African National Congress (ANC).

He is one of the African presidents on our list of those who need the greatest security. Ramaphosa, in contrast to former presidents, favours driving a crossover over sitting in a traditional car or driving an SUV. He makes use of specific or custom-made BMW vehicles, complete with exhibition riders and massive motorcades.

4. Emmerson Mnangagwa (Zimbabwe)

Emmerson Mnangagwa is a revolutionary and politician from Zimbabwe, and he has held the position of President of his nation since the 24th of November, 2017. He held a variety of cabinet ministries and served as Mugabe’s Vice President until November 2017, when he was sacked before assuming power in a coup. He was a member of the ZANU-PF and had been a longstanding associate of previous President Robert Mugabe. He was victorious in the disputed general election held in 2018 and is now serving his first full term as president.

As a direct result of the upheaval that has taken place in the political landscape of Zimbabwe, it has become of the utmost importance that the president be severely guarded. While the president is engaged in official business, whether within or outside the nation, he is subject to heightened levels of protection. A large number of troops from special forces are also part of the security detail, along with high-speed motorbikes, armoured Mercedes-Benz vehicles, and Land Cruisers. The President travels about in an armoured limousine surrounded by a large number of heavily armed bodyguards.

3. Alassane Ouattara ( Ivory Coast)

He was elected to the position of President of the Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire) in 2010, and he has held that position since. At the moment, he has the position of being one of the most protected African presidents. Whether Ouattara travels inside or outside of the nation, he is escorted by a large number of security personnel at all times. The vehicle that Ouattara travels in is closely backed up by highly armoured men, and presidential security accompanies his vehicle on foot until he is out of reach of the general people.

2. The King of Morocco, Mohammed VI (Morocco)

Mohammed, the current King of Morocco, is a member of the Alawite dynasty and rose to the throne on July 23, 1999, after the passing of his father, King Hassan II. Mohammed is the second monarch to rule Morocco in the Alawite tradition.

He has considerable commercial interests in a number of different economic areas throughout Morocco. According to the American business magazine Forbes, he was the wealthiest king in Africa and the fifth wealthiest royal in the world. His net worth has been estimated to be between $2.1 billion and over $8.2 billion, making him the fifth wealthiest monarch in the world overall.

1. Former Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari

Nigeria’s former leader, Muhammadu Buhari, was a member of the country’s political elite and had held the presidency since 2015.

After a military coup in Nigeria on December 31, 1983, he was appointed as the country’s military head of state and served in that capacity until August 27, 1985. He is a retired major general from the Nigerian Army.

Buhari made three separate bids for the presidency of Nigeria: in 2003, 2007, and 2011. During the election, he was victorious against the incumbent President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.

It was the first time in Nigerian history that a sitting president came in second place or below in a national election. On May 29, 2015, he took the oath of office. In February 2019, Buhari won reelection by a margin of nearly 3 million votes, beating his closest challenger, who had served as Vice President in the past, Atiku Abubakar.

His procession had a great number of motorcades, making it the biggest and most magnificent of its kind on the continent. It is very difficult to get access to President Buhari’s compound. The protection comes in the form of a specially trained security guard and a high-speed security motorcade.

In the list of African leaders who are afforded the highest level of security, the President of Nigeria ranked first.

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