His Excellency Teferi Melesse Desta assumed his post today (Monday 14 September 2020) as successor to the previous Ethiopian Ambassador to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Mr Fesseha Shawel Gebre. The Ambassador and his family were afforded a warm welcome by Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office officials and diplomatic staff following their arrival into the UK over the weekend.

Ambassador Teferi begins his post in the UK at a time of great opportunity for Ethio-UK relations and has made it his mission to strengthen these engagements further as the UK moves into a future outside of the European Union. His priorities will be focused on Ethio-UK cooperation in response to the Coronavirus crisis, on coordination for regional peace and security, on the promotion of trade, tourism and investment and on climate change ahead of the COP26 UN Climate conference in Glasgow in November 2021.

Ambassador Teferi joined the Diplomatic Corps in 1993 and has held numerous positions in Addis Ababa and abroad, most recently as Consul General at the Consulate-General of Ethiopia in Guangzhou, China.

Previously, he served as Director General for Public Diplomacy and Communications, Chief Advisor to the Minister on Capacity Building, and Director in the Ethiopian Expatriate Affairs Directorate-General at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Addis Ababa. Ambassador Teferi’s other roles abroad included Consul General at the Consulate-General of Ethiopia in Geneva, Switzerland; Chargé d’affaires at the Ethiopian Embassy in Harare, Zimbabwe as well as Minister Counsellor at the Ethiopian Embassy in Brussels, Belgium.

Regarding his appointment, Ambassador Teferi said:

“I am delighted to be the new Ethiopian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, one of Ethiopia’s most important partners and friends. We have a long history of cooperation internationally and have consistently collaborated on issues including international peace and security, climate change and sustainable development. The ongoing Coronavirus pandemic has further highlighted the importance of international partnerships and I hope to find further opportunities where Ethiopia and the UK can work together as we continue developing our strategic and warm relations in the years ahead.”

The Ambassador’s full biography is available on request. Please email press@ethioembassy.org.uk