Ethiopia's new Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn has been sworn into office, days after Ethiopians held the funeral of ex-premier, Meles Zenawi in the capital Addis Ababa.

"I, Hailemariam Desalegn, in front of the parliament, accept to be the prime minister of Ethiopia….With the decision of the Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) and the parliament, I am very happy to take the responsibility of being prime minister… We brought peace, democracy and development to the country,” AFP quoted Desalegn as saying on Friday.

“Meles [late premier] considered himself as a son of the people… I promise to continue Meles's legacy without any change….We will reinforce democracy and human rights in the country. If there are problems, we will fix it…We will work with human rights organizations, the national elections board and some opposition parties,” he added.

Last week, the parliament members elected the 47-year-old water engineer Hailemariam Desalegn, as the chairman of the ruling coalition Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) and the new premier of the country.


Earlier in August, Meles Zenawi [former premier] died at the age of 57 in a hospital in Belgium and his body was buried at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in the capital.

Meanwhile, reports say that the exact cause of Zenawi’s death is still unknown.

Zenawi, who had been in power since 1991, was hailed for stirring economic growth in Ethiopia.
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Press TV