Meet the 5 youngest state leaders in the world.
If you’re slowly entering a mid-life crisis, don’t fret, life could get better. For one, you could actually be leading a country within the next few years.
Today, Emmanuel Macron finally assumes office as the President of France after an intense and headline-grabbing election. More interestingly, at 39 years-old, it makes him one of the youngest head of states in the world today.
While Macron’s relatively youthful age may sound unconventional, he is not alone. Here is a list of the top five youngest head of states in the world.
Emil Dimitriev
Age: 38
Birthday: 19 March 1979
Country: Macedonia
Dimitriev is the epitome of a high flier. Beginning his political career as the president of the VMRO-DPMNE Youth Force Union in 1996, he rose through the party’s ranks to become its secretary general in 2013 and a Minister of Parliament in 2014. In January 2016, after former Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski stepped down, Dimitriev was nominated and became the interim Prime Minister of Macedonia just a few days later.
Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck
Age: 37
Birthday: 21 February 1980
Country: Bhutan
We may have our personal nicknames, but none is arguably cooler than King Jigme. Known as the “Dragon King” or the “Supreme Protector of the People”, At 37 years old, he is in charge of the happiest country in the world, Bhutan. The Oxford educated monarch was coronated at the tender age of 28 years old in 2008.
King Jigme was a great admirer of former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew and attended Mr Lee’s funeral in 2015. In fact, he even ordered his country’s flag to be hung at half mast during the state funeral.
Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani
Source
Age: 36
Birthday: 3 June 1980
Country: Qatar
As a member of the influential Al Thani family in Qatar, Sheikh Tamim’s rise to politics was no big surprise. He became the emir of Qatar in June 2013 at the age of 32 after he was named as the successor by his father, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani.
Interestingly, Sheikh Tamim gained popularity in an unconventional way – sports. As a former sports administrator, Sheikh Tamim was voted the “best sports personality in the Arab World” by Egyptian Newspaper Al-Ahram. Apart from being a member of the International Olympic Committee, Sheikh Tamim’s company Qatar Sports Investments also owns French football club Paris St Germain.
Kim Jong-un
Age: 33/34
Birthday: 8 Jan 1983/84
Country: North Korea
The supreme leader of the Democratic Republic of North Kim Jong-un needs no introduction. With some sources stating his year of birth as either 1983 or 1984, his exact age is a mystery. Nonetheless, it would mean that he was in his late twenties when he rose to power after the death of his father, Kim Jong-il. So, while some of us were beginning our careers, Kim was already in charge of nuclear codes.
Recently, the Swiss-educated leader, also known as the “Morning Star King”, has made headlines recently for his many missile tests that has invigorated another infamously volatile world leader, American President Donald Trump.
Vanessa D’Ambrosio
Age: 29
Birthday: 26 April 1988
Country: San Marino
While D’Ambrosio was sworn in on the 1st April 2017, the youngest head of state on this list is not to be taken lightly. At a tender age of 29 years old, she began her 6-month stint as the captain regent the small microstate of San Marino this year, where she serves alongside her co-leader, Mimma Zavoli.
