Breaking: Nebiat Getachew, a career diplomat, becomes the new spokesperson of MoFA

January 10, 2019

Addis Abeba, January 10/2018 – Nebiat Getachew, a career diplomat with “several years of professional diplomatic experience”, has become the new face and voice of Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, sources close to the matter told Addis Standard.

Nebiyat (pictured) replaces the outgoing spokesperson, Meles Alem, who has recently been appointed as Ethiopia’s Ambassador to Nairobi, Kenya.

According to his career background information obtained by Addis Standard, prior to his new position, Nebiat was the Director General for North America, South America and the Caribbean. From the beginning of his career in 1993, Nebiat held different positions at the Ministry including Director General for Political and Diplomatic Affairs at the Minister’s Cabinet Office; Director of Peace and Security at Ethiopian Permanent Mission to the African Union & UNECA; Director for American Affairs; Acting Director at Public Diplomacy and Communication Directorate General. He has also served as the Editor of publications of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Assigned as a diplomat overseas, Nebiat served as Minister Counselor I for Political and Economic Cooperation Affairs at the Embassy of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to Canada, Ottawa; Ethiopia’s representative at the International Civil Aviation Organization, ICAO, Montreal; Second Secretary at the Ethiopian Embassy in Stockholm, Sweden; Charge d’affaires a.i at the Ethiopian Embassy in Seoul, Republic of Korea; Second Secretary at the Ethiopian Embassy in Seoul, Republic of Korea.

He is a Chevening Scholar and holds an M.A. (with distinction) in International Communication from the University of Leeds, UK. As a Korea Foundation Fellow, he got a Certificate in Korean Language and Culture, from Korea University. He did his undergraduate studies at Addis Abeba University and his highschool studies at St. Joseph School in Addis Abeba.

Nebiat speaks Amharic and English fluently and has a good understanding of Korean language. He is married with three kids. AS