It's rare for the leader of a country to 
die in office. Since 2008, it's happened 13 times worldwide - but10 of those leaders have been African. Why is it so much more common in this one continent?
On the recent death of Ghanian leader, President John Atta Mills, who died suddenly at the age of 68, Ruth Alexander, BBC News takes a closer look into the history of the death of other African leaders at such an early age.
She provides a few explanations such as that 'African leaders are just older than those of other continents.' However, the average age of 61 years old for African leaders is the same as in Asia, whereas in Europe it is 55 and in Latin America it is 59.
Dr George Leeson (Co-Director, Oxford Institute of Population Ageing) provides another perspective, namely that 'poverty in childhood and early life can also have a lasting impact. He explains.
"African presidents, before they have been elected, will have led a relatively disadvantaged life, and disadvantageous lifestyle, and that will impact on their life expectancies at subsequent ages," he says.
"So once they get into the presidential office, even though they will be living a lifestyle far far far removed from their fellow citizens, which would increase their life expectancy in relation to those fellow citizens, they do have an accumulated disadvantageous lifestyle which they have to pay back on at some time."
Although of course, not all African leaders will have had poor childhoods.
But whatever's going on, such a death toll creates uncertainty. Deaths in office create power vacuums, which can be dangerous and destabilising.
To read the complete story on BBC News, 27 August 2012 click here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19356410
