Background
Mulatu was born in the town of Arjo in Welega Province.
Diplomat President of Ethiopia
Mulatu was born in the town of Arjo in Welega Province.
He was educated in China, receiving his bachelor"s degree in philosophy of political economy and doctorate in international law at Peking University.
He taught at some "foreign universities and institutions", according to Speaker Abadula Gemeda. In the "mid-1990s" he was Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Cooperation under Minister Girma Birru, and he was appointed as Minister of Agriculture in 2001. He was also Speaker of the House of Federation from 2002 to 2005.
He served as Ethiopia"s Ambassador to China, Japan, and Turkey.
While serving as Ambassador to Turkey, he was elected as President of Ethiopia by a unanimous parliamentary vote on 7 October 2013. Like his predecessors Girma Wolde-Giorgis and Negasso Gidada, he is Oromo.
Mulatu has one son.
Girma Seifu of the Unity for Democracy and Justice, the sole opposition member of parliament, welcomed his election.
