This short article is intended as an addition to the main article on the politics of the Françafrique, which I recommend you read first. This is not a comprehensive list of French relations with African countries, or a comprehensive analysis of France’s relationship with the countries mentioned. It is rather a collection of interesting, informative and amusing findings concerning the seven odd countries (and their heads of state) I would define as closest to France politically.
Moroccan King Mohammed VI
King Mohammed VI has been king since 1999, and has been among the first foreign heads of state to meet every French president since Jacques Chirac, making Macron his fourth French counterpart. French-Moroccan relations are regularly strained by rhetoric around immigration and visa issues, but cooperation has never stopped. France is one of few states that supports the Moroccan stance on Western Sahara, as a symbol of goodwill.
France has remained Morocco’s most important partner internationally since Moroccan independence in 1956. France is the largest investing country in the Moroccan economy and the second largest arms supplier to Morocco after the US. France is the largest destination for Moroccan emigration, both for work and education.
Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara
Ouattara took power in the Ivory Coast in 2011 after a contested presidential election. His rise to power was made possible by the French military Operation Licorne, in which the French military directly fought the forces of incumbent president Laurent Gbagbo. Ouattara has had a favorable stance towards the French ever since they put him into power. Being born in 1942, he lived his first 18 years as a French subject.
The Ivory Coast had French troops stationed in the country from 2002 until 2025, when Ouattara requested that they leave. This request was the least dramatic of the recent French military withdrawals, and Ouattara maintains that military cooperation will continue without a permanent stationing of French forces.
Ouattara won reelection on October 25th, 2025, after banning a record number of opposition candidates from running. He will be 88 years old when the next election is held in 2030.
Togolese leader Faure Gnassingbé
Gnassingbé took power in Togo in 2005, immediately after his father’s death. His father, Gnassingbé Eyadéma, had taken power by coup in 1967 and had an excellent relationship with France, including when France prevented a Togolese coup in 1986. France and Togo have been militarily allied by a mutual defense pact since 1963, although French forces have never been stationed in the country permanently since independence.
On May 3rd, Gnassingbé took the new position of President of the Council of Ministers after 20 years in the presidency. This new position is above that of President, and allows Gnassingbé to remain in power without care for term limits, and without participating in presidential elections at all. At 59, there is no reason politically and healthwise to retreat from power at any point in the foreseeable future.
Beninese President Patrice Talon
Talon won a legitimate election in 2016 by beating the incumbent ruling party. French-Beninese relations are largely based on a number of civil cooperation treaties signed bilaterally in 1975, and have remained in force since.
On December 7th, 2025, a group of Beninese army officers attempted to overthrow the government. The coup attempt was put down by loyalists in the Beninese army, with logistical and intelligence support from France.
Talon ends his second and last term in April, when there will be a new election.
Cameroonian President Paul Biya
Paul Biya is Cameroon’s second president since independence from France in 1960. He was made prime minister in 1975 and president in 1982, making him one of the longest serving leaders in the world. He received his higher education in France, and being born in 1933, he lived the first 27 years of his life as a French subject.
France is the main foreign investor for Cameroon, and one of Cameroon’s main trading partners. France is also Cameroon’s largest arms supplier, and the French military trains the Cameroonian armed forces, while Cameroon gave French forces entry and logistical support when France was still involved in the Central African Republic’s civil war. Biya is waging a brutal counter-insurgency campaign in the western anglophone Ambazonia region, a case which France is remarkably silent on.
Biya recently won reelection with 54% of the vote, his worst result since 1992. It is also the first time the opposition has claimed victory since 1992. He campaigned on his promise that “the best is yet to come” as he has apparently not delivered his best through his 50 years of political primacy. He will be 99 years old when the next election is held in 2032.
Gabonese President Brice Oligui Nguema
Nguema took power in 2023 by coup, when he deposed his cousin Ali Bongo. The Gabonese coup was the only coup in a francophone country that did not lead to a significant worsening of relations with France, as Nguema’s regime is essentially a continuation of the Bongo regime, just led by a different branch of the family. Omar Bongo, Ali Bongo’s father and Nguema’s uncle, took power in 1967.
Gabon is the only country in Central Africa where there are still permanent French forces present, who carry out training for the Gabonese army. France is also a major investor in the Gabonese economy, and a major trading partner. Of all countries in Africa Gabon is the most Francophone, with around 80% of the population knowing the language and around 15% speaking it natively, according to Ethnologue.
On May 3rd, Nguema was formally inaugurated as president after winning 95% of the vote in a presidential election. At only 50, with the next election happening in 2032, and seemingly complete control of the military, his rule seems secure for the foreseeable future.
President of the Republic of the Congo Denis Sassou Nguesso
Nguesso took power with military support in 1977, after the assassination of his predecessor. His regime was very friendly to the French from the beginning, until he lost power through an election in 1992. While he was leading the opposition two civil wars broke out between the government and Nguesso’s supporting militias. These militias allegedly received weapons from the French, and by 1997 he was back in power.
France is one of Congo’s largest trading partners, arms suppliers and foreign investors. The Congolese petroleum industry, which the country is deeply economically reliant on, is developed with French expertise through the company TotalEnergies, formerly known as Elf.
Nguesso, who was born in 1943, will be reelected at the age of 82 this March.
Djiboutian President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh
Guelleh is the second ever president of Djibouti, and took over as his uncle’s successor in 1999. Djibouti was the last colony in Africa to win its formal independence from France and is the location of the largest remaining French military deployment on the continent.
Having military bases in Djibouti is not unique to France, however. Foreign militaries are a cornerstone of Djibouti’s economy, and the country hosts bases from France, the US, Italy, Japan, and China.
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