Sahle-Work Zewde Named Ethiopia's First Woman President

The decision was made by a unanimous vote on Thursday during the second Special Joint Session of Ethiopia's two houses of parliament - the House of Peoples' Representatives and the House of the Federation, Al Jazeera reported.

A former top diplomat, Zewde has served as both the special representative of the United Nations' secretary-general and the head of the UN office to the African Union.

She will replace Mulatu Teshome in the largely ceremonial role, serving under Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who holds the country's highest executive powers, including responsibility for the armed forces.

During her diplomatic career, Zewde was also head of the UN office to Kenya and has acted as Ethiopia's ambassador to several countries including France, Djibouti and Senegal.

In mid-October, Abiy appointed a 20-person cabinet in which half the posts were assigned to women.

They include Defense Minister Aisha Mohammed and Muferiat Kamil who leads the newly-created Ministry of Peace, responsible for police and domestic intelligence agencies.