Muferiat Kamil, a former Minister of Women’s Affairs has been chosen by the Ethiopia’s House of Peoples’ Representatives as its new speaker, state-affiliated FANA Broadcasting Corporate reports.
Muferiat replaces Abadula Gemeda resigned from his position last year in October. Gemeda had held the position since 2010.
It remains unclear what role Gemeda will be taking although there are reports that he is poised to take on a bigger role within new Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government.
Muferiat belongs to the Southern Ethiopia Peoples Democratic Movement (SEPDM) where the immediate past Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn who resigned earlier this year.
The SEPDM is one of the constituent bodies of the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF).
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Thursday announced a cabinet reshuffle of 29 ministers, 10 of them being new entrants while 6 were re-assigned to other portfolios.
During Abiy’s presentation of his new cabinet, legislators raised concerns over the absence of women on the list. Mr. Abiy promised that more women will be named in a subsequent list.
About Muferiat Kamil
Muferiat Kamil was born in Jimma, the largest city in southwestern Ethiopia.
She graduated from Haramaya University with BSc. degree in Agriculture in 2000.
Muferiat held different women affairs roles from 2002 untill her appointment as Public Relations Advisor to the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region (SNNPR) President in 2007.
In 2008, she became Minister of Women’s Affairs at the age of 32, making her the youngest appointee of the late Meles Zenawi.
