ADDIS ABABA – Ethiopia’s prime minister-elect Abiye Ahmed will be sworn in on Monday, its parliament said, after the ruling coalition chose him to succeed Hailemariam Desalegn as its chairperson.
The ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front coalition on Tuesday voted in the 42-year-old, a retired lieutenant general from Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, the Oromo, to take over the government.
“The House of People’s Representatives will hold an extraordinary session on April 2 to swear in Dr. Abiye Ahmed,” the body said in a statement.
Abiye will now face pressure to appeal to legions of disaffected youth and to push through promised reforms.
The event was initially scheduled for Saturday. The statement did not give a reason for the postponement.