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Ingrid Bouterse-Waldring

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ingrid Bouterse-Waldring
Bouterse-Waldring in 2010
9th First Lady of Suriname
In office
12 August 2010 – 16 July 2020
PresidentDési Bouterse
Preceded byLiesbeth Venetiaan-Vanenburg
Succeeded byMellisa Santokhi-Seenacherry
Personal details
Born
Ingrid Yolanda Waldring

(1961-04-24) 24 April 1961 (age 64)[1]
Paramaribo, Suriname
Political partyNational Democratic Party
Spouse
(m. 1990)
Children1

Ingrid Yolanda Bouterse-Waldring (née Waldring; born 24 April 1961) is a Surinamese entrepreneur who served as the First Lady of Suriname from 2010 to 2020 as the wife of President Dési Bouterse.

Biography

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Waldring was born on 24 April 1961 in Paramaribo, Suriname. She graduated from the Secondary Business School in Paramaribo and worked at the Central National Accountancy Service in the 1980s. She has a strong interest in healthy nutrition, healthy lifestyle and natural products.[2] In 1990, she married politician and former military leader Dési Bouterse. The couple had one daughter, and they also raised four foster children.[3]

In 2010, Dési Bouterse became the President of Suriname, making Bouterse-Waldring the First Lady of Suriname. As first lady, Bouterse-Waldring had a ceremonial and supportive role for the president. She was visible in various areas, such as education and youth development, for which she was given the patronage of the Early Childhood Development program in October 2013, a collaboration between the Surinamese government, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Foundation for Human Development.[4]

After Bouterse's presidency ended on June 30, 2020, Bouterse-Waldring was awarded the Grand Ribbon by her husband, the highest distinction in the Honorary Order of the Yellow Star.[5]

Bouterse-Waldring entered politics after her husband, Dési Bouterse, was sentenced to twenty years in prison on appeal in late 2023 and went into hiding. Dési Bouterse died on 23 December 2024.[6] Bouterse-Waldring became vice-chair of the National Democratic Party, but played no significant role. Bouterse-Waldring became lijstduwer for the 2025 Surinamese general election.[7]

References

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  1. ^ "Mrs. Ingrid Bouterse-Waldring". sclan.org. Spouses of CARICOM Leaders Action Network. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
  2. ^ Spouses of Caricom Leaders Action Network, Mrs. Ingrid Bouterse-Waldring Suriname
  3. ^ "Weduwe Bouterse boos op OM: bericht over drankmisbruik 'pijnlijk en vernederend'". AD.nl (in Dutch). 30 December 2024.
  4. ^ "Suriname's investment in ECD: A means to reap future benefits". Caribbean Development Trends. 2013-11-15.
  5. ^ Kabinet van de President, [https://gov.sr/ministeries/kabinet-van-de-president/gedecoreerden/ Bouterse-Waldring, Ingrid
  6. ^ De Ware Tijd, ‘Bouterse maandagavond overleden’, 27 December 2024 (in Dutch)
  7. ^ "Weduwe van wijlen ex-president Bouterse lijstduwer NDP, Geerlings-Simons lijsttrekker" (in Dutch). GFC nieuws. 2025-03-20. Retrieved 2025-04-02.