Yacouba Isaac Zida

Yacouba Isaac Zida (born 16 November 1965) is a Burkinabé military officer who briefly served as Burkina Faso's interim head of state in November 2014. He took power in the aftermath of the 2014 Burkinabé uprising, sidelining a more senior officer, Honoré Nabéré Traoré. A few weeks later, a civilian, Michel Kafando, was chosen to replace Zida as transitional head of state; Kafando then appointed Zida as Prime Minister on 19 November 2014. Zida was briefly removed from office by the Regiment of Presidential Security in a September 2015 coup, but he was restored as Prime Minister within a week. Early career Zida obtained a master's degree in International Management from the University of Lyon. He also received military training from the American army. Under President Blaise Compaoré, he served as deputy commander of the Regiment of Presidential Security. He was a UN peacekeeper in Democratic Republic of the Congo from 2008 to 2009. 2014 Burkinabé uprising