Photos: Wikimedia Commons
The Ethiopian parliament voted in a new president, replacing one embroiled in ongoing political differences with the government.
Taye Atskeselassie, who has been foreign minister for just eight months, will take over from former UN diplomat Sahle-Work Zewde, Ethiopia’s first female president.
The role of president is largely ceremonial in Ethiopia, with limited political authority. Executive power is mainly wielded by the prime minister. Sahle-Work became Ethiopia’s first female president in 2018.
The outgoing president was appointed during the early years of the Abiy Ahmed premiership that saw prominent women appointed in important positions in a bid to embrace gender parity.
In a post on X on Sunday that presaged her impending resignation, she quoted a famous Amharic song about hopelessness and silence being the only option, stating: “I tried that for a whole year.”
The outgoing president has been criticized for being indifferent with the affairs of the nation, including the Tigray war that saw thousands killed and ongoing fighting in the neighboring Amhara region.
— Samuel Getachew in Addis Ababa
