Ethiopia's Parliament Reappoints Abiy Ahmed as Prime Minister for Second Five-Year Term

Ethiopia's parliament on Monday reappointed Abiy Ahmed as prime minister for a second five-year term, following his Prosperity Party's commanding victory in the general election held on 1 June.

"Abiy Ahmed is hereby appointed as the prime minister of Ethiopia," the newly elected speaker of parliament, Ahmed Shide, announced in a televised session, AFP reported.

Abiy then took the constitutional oath of office in the presence of President Taye Atske-Selassie, senior government officials and invited guests, according to Fana Media Corporation.

A unanimous vote in the new House

Deputy Prime Minister Temesgen Truneh presented Abiy as the ruling party's nominee during the inaugural session of the seventh House of Peoples' Representatives, and the House unanimously endorsed the nomination, Fana said.

According to Xinhua, the Prosperity Party won 438 of the 486 contested seats in the June vote, giving it the majority needed to form the federal executive. Newly elected members of the House also took their oaths on Monday.

The Office of the Prime Minister described the new administration as the "Medemer Government" and called its formation "a new horizon of hope" for Ethiopia, Kenya's Capital FM reported. Medemer, Abiy's political philosophy, is an Amharic term meaning "addition" or "coming together".

Sea access and the dam

In his address to lawmakers, Abiy said his government would pursue access to the sea through dialogue, mutual benefit and give-and-take, the Ethiopian News Agency (ENA) reported.

He also pointed to the completion of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. "When they pulled us with a long rope to prevent us from bringing our dam to completion, we stumbled, but we did not fall, nor will we fall," Abiy said, according to ENA.

ENA said his agenda for the new term includes constitutional updates through the National Dialogue process, continued macroeconomic reforms and stronger measures against corruption and nepotism.

Second term begins amid conflict

The swearing-in comes as federal forces and allied fighters have retaken Mekelle, the capital of the northern Tigray region, after the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) withdrew from the city, Al Jazeera reported.

In a statement on Saturday, the TPLF said it had "temporarily moved out of Mekelle" and that the regional government would "operate from somewhere else", according to Al Jazeera.

Capital FM said the renewed fighting began on 23 September and has raised fears of a return to the 2020-2022 Tigray war, which ended with the Pretoria peace agreement.

Relations with neighbouring Eritrea have also collapsed. The two countries severed diplomatic ties after Addis Ababa accused Asmara of backing a new rebel alliance, an allegation Eritrea has denied, Capital FM reported.