Meet Ethiopia’s First Female President, Sahle-Work Zewde

Sahle-Work Zewde Replaces Resigned Mulatu Teshome As President Of Ethiopia

Ethiopia today appointed its first female President after a unanimous vote of lawmakers picked career diplomat Sahle-Work Zewde to replace Mulatu Teshome who resigned.

Sahle-Work, who is in her late 60s, has been Ethiopia’s ambassador to France, Djibouti, Senegal and the regional bloc, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

Just prior to her appointment as president, she was the UN’s top official at the African Union. She is a proficient speaker of English and French as well as Amharic languages.

New President, Zewde is expected to serve two six-year terms.

Political power in Ethiopia is wielded by the prime minister while the president’s role is restricted to attending ceremonies and functions.

Ethiopia’s reformist Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed last week appointed a 20-person cabinet in which half the posts are held by women.

They include defence minister, Aisha Mohammed and Muferiat Kamil who leads the newly-created Ministry of Peace, responsible for police and domestic intelligence agencies.