Sahle-Work Zewde was born on February 21, 1950, and is an Ethiopian politician and the current President of Ethiopia, being the first woman to hold the office. A career diplomat, she was elected president unanimously by members of the Federal Parliamentary Assembly on 25 October 2018. Sahle-Work was previously Special Representative of United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres to the African Union and Head of the United Nations Office to the African Union at the level of Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations.

American business magazine Forbes, on its annual edition of the Forbes list of The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women, listed Sahle-Work as the 96th most powerful woman in the world, and the highest-ranking African woman on the list.  Sahle-Work was only the second woman to be appointed an ambassador in Ethiopia’s history.  In 2011, Ban appointed Sahle-Work as Director-General of the United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON).  Under Sahle-Work, the Nairobi office became a more important UN hub for East and Central Africa, according to the 2012 Africa Yearbook.

She is fluent in Amharic, French, and English.