Ethiopia’s parliament, the House of Peoples’ Representatives, has chosen a former Minister of Women’s, as its new speaker. She replaces Abadula Gemeda who has been in the role since 2010.
Muferiat Kamil belongs to the Southern Ethiopia Peoples Democratic Movement (SEPDM), one of the constituent bodies of the ruling Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF).
In 2008, Muferiat Kamil, the new speaker became Minister of Women’s Affairs at the age of 32, at the time, the youngest appointee of the late Meles Zenawi.
She was born in Jimma, the largest city in south-western Ethiopia. She Graduated from Haramaya University with BSc. Degree in Agriculture in 2000.
She held different women affairs roles and from 2002 till her appointment as Public Relations Advisor to the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region (SNNPR) President in 2007.
She worked at the EPRDF office in Addis Ababa in April 2008, then as a junior public relations officer till her appointment as Minister of Women’s Affairs.
Both the speaker and the deputy positions will be held by women, as Shitaye Menale was appointed as her Deputy.
