A few days before the United Nations Population Award was presented to the Bonne Action Umugiraneza Foundation, Angeline Ndayishimiye claimed that no First Lady in the world had received the distinction before her. To support her claim, the First Lady of Burundi notably cited Indira Gandhi, the former Prime Minister of India and a 1983 laureate of the Award. However, United Nations archives contradict this claim. In 1997, Elizabeth Aguirre de Calderón Sol received the same Award while serving as First Lady of El Salvador. (Le Mandat)
A few days before the July 8, 2026 ceremony in New York, during which the Bonne Action Umugiraneza Foundation was to receive the United Nations Population Award, Burundi’s First Lady spoke about the distinctions associated with her. Asked by a journalist how she felt ahead of receiving two awards—the United Nations Population Award in New York and the Global Health Award in London—she claimed that no First Lady in the world had received this award before her.
“The awards I am going to receive, as a human being, are overwhelming. I don’t know what to say. These are awards, I would say, that no First Lady has ever received anywhere in the world. Even those who received this award were Prime Ministers. Indira Gandhi, in India, received this award. She was among the first people to receive it. Other colleagues also receive awards, but not United Nations awards.” she said.
In the interview, published on July 4, 2026, on the YouTube channel of Radio-Télévision Nationale du Burundi (RTNB), the 2023 United Nations Population Award laureate reiterated her claim:
“Yes, I think that this award… ask my predecessors here in Burundi if you want. I think that… As I said, I am the first to receive it in the whole world among First Ladies. Because when you check online, it’s easy: they show you who has received this award.”
The reference to Indira Gandhi clarifies the scope of the claim
In her remarks, Angeline Ndayishimiye herself cites Indira Gandhi among the personalities who received the United Nations Population Award.
The former Prime Minister of India was indeed among the first laureates of the Award, which was presented for the first time in 1983.
This reference helps clarify the scope of the Burundian First Lady’s remarks. Angeline Ndayishimiye is referring to the history of individuals who have received the Award and argues that some women previously honoured held positions such as Prime Minister, but that no First Lady had received the distinction before her.
It is precisely on this point that the United Nations archives contradict her claim.
A First Lady had already received the Award in 1997
Twenty-six years before Angeline Ndayishimiye personally received the Award in 2023, Elizabeth Aguirre de Calderón Sol was among the laureates of the 1997 United Nations Population Award.
Official United Nations documents explicitly identified her, at the time the Award was presented, as the First Lady of El Salvador and Director of the country’s National Family Secretariat.
She shared the distinction with two other laureates: Professor Toshio Kuroda, Honorary Director of the Population Research Institute at Nihon University in Tokyo, and Thai Senator Mechai Viravaidya, Director of the Population and Community Development Association.
The three laureates had been announced by the Award Committee in February 1997. The award ceremony was held on June 10 of that year at United Nations Headquarters in New York.
Then United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan delivered remarks on the occasion of the ceremony.
UN documents also indicate that each of the three laureates was to receive a diploma and a gold medal, while equally sharing a total monetary award of US$25,000.
Why was Elizabeth Aguirre de Calderón Sol awarded the prize?
The wife of Armando Calderón Sol, President of El Salvador from June 1994 to June 1999, was notably recognized for her work in promoting social development.
According to the Award Committee, Elizabeth Aguirre de Calderón Sol was selected for the work she had carried out in this field while serving as President of the Social Development Unit in 1989 and, later, for her work as head of El Salvador’s National Secretariat for the Family.
Verdict: False
Angeline Ndayishimiye’s claim that she was the first First Lady in the world to receive the United Nations Population Award is false.
Official United Nations archives establish that Elizabeth Aguirre de Calderón Sol received the distinction in 1997 while serving as First Lady of El Salvador—26 years before Angeline Ndayishimiye personally received the Award in 2023.
Angeline Ndayishimiye’s reference to Indira Gandhi does not change this finding. While the former Indian leader was indeed among the first personalities to receive the Award in 1983, the case of Elizabeth Aguirre de Calderón Sol constitutes a clear precedent that directly contradicts the Burundian First Lady’s claim.
