Paul Biya, who became Cameroon's Head of State on November 6, 1982, was born February 13, 1933, at Mvomeka, South Province of Cameroon. Biya is the third of eight children born to Etenne Mvondo Assam and Anastasie Eyinga Elle. His father was a catechist while his grandfather was a farmer.
When he was seven, his parents sent him to the Catholic mission school at Ndem, approximately 30 miles from his home. One of Biya's French tutors there found his work excellent, and determined that Biya should become a priest. At the age of 14, he was admitted at the Edea and Akono Junior Seminaries, run by the Saint Esprit fathers.
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