ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – Ethiopia’s new prime minister named a cabinet on Thursday that includes the former mining minister as defense minister and retains the finance and foreign ministers from his predecessor’s cabinet.
Abiy Ahmed, who was appointed by Ethiopia’s ruling coalition last month and sworn in as prime minister on April 2, made the announcement on state television.
“I am requesting parliament to ratify the reshuffle of six ministers and the new appointment of 10 others,” Ahmed, a former army officer, said. The remaining ministers from the previous cabinet, including finance and foreign affairs, were unchanged.
Every lawmaker in the 547-seat parliament is from the ruling EPRDF coalition, so the cabinet is expected to be ratified by the assembly.
Ethiopia’s economy has officially grown at an average of nearly 10 percent for the past decade, the fastest in Africa, but political unrest in the country of 100 million people led to the sudden resignation of Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn in February.
Ethiopian parliament approved today the following appointments by PM Abiy Ahmed:
1) Mottuma Mekasa (OPDO) – Minister of Defence
2) Siraj Fegessa (SEPDM) – Minister of Transport
3) Shiferaw Shigute (SEPDM) – Minister of Agri & Livestock
4) Ahmed Shide (ESPDP) – GCAO (Gov’t communication)
5) Berhanu Tsegaye (OPDO) – Attoreny General
6) Hirut Woldemariam (SEPDM) – Minister Labor and Social Affairs
7) Teshome Toga (SEPDM) – Minister of Public Enterprise
8) Umer Husien (OPDO) – Revenue and Customs Authority with ministerial rank
9) Ubah Mohamed (ESPDP) – Minister of ICT
10) Ambachew Mekonen (ANDM) – Minister of Industry
11) Fozia Amin (OPDO) – Minister of Culture and Tourism
12) Zanterar Abay (ANDM) – Minister of Urban Dev’t & Housing
13) Meles Alemu (SEPDM) – Minister of Mining and Energy
14) Yalem Tsegaye (TPLF) – Minister of Women & Children
15) Melaku Alebel (ANDM) – Minister of Trade
16) Amir Aman (ANDM) – Minister of Health
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#Ethiopia: PM Abiy Ahmed made 9 more appointments today.
1) Abadula Gemeda (OPDO) – National Security Advisor
2) Demitu Hambisa (OPDO) – Chief of the Staff of the Cabinet and the PM Office
3) Bekele Bulado (PHD)(SEPDM) – DG of METEC
4) Temesgen Tiruneh (ANDM) – DG of INSA
5) Yared Zerihun (SEPDM) – Commissioner General of Federal Police Commissioner
6) Ahmed Abtew (ANDM) – DG of Policy Study and Research Center
7) Fetlework G/egziabher (TPLF) – head of EPRDF Secretariat aka Democracy Coordination Center
8/ Moges Balcha (SEPDM) – head of Research and publication dept at EPRDF Secretariat aka Democracy Coordination Center
9/ Alemnew Mekonen (ANDM) – President of Meles Zenawi Academy