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Abiy’s Prosperity Party was declared the winner of parliamentary elections held earlier this year.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has been sworn in for a new five-year term as his government faces a host of challenges, including a months-long conflict in the northern region of Tigray.
Abiy took the oath of office, administered by Supreme Court Chief Justice Meaza Ashenafi, on Monday following similar oaths by the speaker and deputy speaker of the parliament’s lower house.
Abiy’s Prosperity Party was declared the winner of parliamentary elections earlier this year in a vote criticised and, at times, boycotted by opposition parties but described by some outside electoral observers as better run than those in the past.
In June, the prime minister’s party won 410 of the 436 parliamentary seats that were contested.
Three regions where elections had been delayed voted last month. Voting did not take place in the northern Tigray region which is under the control of regional forces opposed to the government in Addis Ababa.
The election marked the first time Abiy faced voters since he was appointed prime minister in 2018 following several years of anti-government protests.
The prime minister, the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize winner for restoring ties with neighbouring Eritrea and for pursuing sweeping political reforms, now faces major challenges as war in the Tigray region spreads to other parts of the country, deadly ethnic violence continues and watchdogs warn that repressive government practices are on the return.
The 11-month war is weakening Ethiopia’s economy, once one of Africa’s fastest growing, and threatening to isolate Abiy, once seen as a regional peacemaker.
Just three African heads of state – from Nigeria, Senegal and neighbouring Somalia – attended Monday’s ceremony.
Last week, Ethiopia’s government faced condemnation from the United Nations, United States and several European nations after it expelled seven UN officials it accused of supporting the Tigray forces who have been battling Ethiopian and allied forces.