media releases - Zenawi to speak at Mbeki Lecture

Ethiopian Prime Minister, His Excellency Dr Meles Zenawi will deliver the keynote address at the 2012 Thabo Mbeki Africa Day Lecture at 18:00 on Thursday, 24 May 2012, hosted jointly by Unisa and the Thabo Mbeki Foundation.

Dr Zenawi’s address will be on the topic: “Africa in the New World Order: Challenges and Opportunities”.

It will be followed by a panel discussion comprising Dr Zenawi and former South African President, His Excellency Mr Thabo Mbeki, facilitated by renowned African scholar, Professor Chris Landsberg.   

The Thabo Mbeki Africa Day Lecture is an annual event which started with the inaugural lecture by His Excellency Mr Thabo Mbeki on 27 May 2010, while former President of the United Republic of Tanzania, His Excellency Mr Benjamin Mkapa delivered the second lecture in 2011.     

Unisa and the Thabo Mbeki Foundation cordially invite the media to the lecture. The details are as follows:

Date    :           Thursday, 24 May 2012

Time    :           18:00 – 20:00

Venue :           ZK Matthews Great Hall, Unisa Muckleneuk Campus, Preller Street, Pretoria

About HE Dr. Melez Zenawi

Dr Meles Zenawi was born on 8 May 1955 at Adwa in northern Ethiopia. He acquired an MBA (Master of Business Administration) from the Open University of the United Kingdom in 1995 and an MSc. (Masters of Science) in Economics from the Erasmus University of the Netherlands in 2004. In July 2002 Mr Zenawi received an honorary doctoral degree in political science from the Hannam University of South Korea. Dr Zenawi interrupted his studies in 1974 to join the Tigrai Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF). He became a member of the Leadership Committee of the TPLF in 1979 and to its Executive Committee in 1983. He is chairman of both the TPLF and the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) since 1989. EPRDF is a political alliance of the four main political organisations in the country.

Upon the defeat of the military junta, Dr Zenawi became president of the Transitional Government of Ethiopia and Chairman of the Council of Representatives (the legislative body of the transitional government) from 1991 to 1995. He was elected Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia in 1995 and re-elected for a second term in 2000.  He served as chairman of the Organisation of the African Unity (OAU) from June 1995 until June 1996. He currently serves as co-chairman of the Global Coalition for Africa. He has also been actively involved in IGAD's efforts to end the conflicts in Sudan and Somalia, and Africa initiatives to seek a solution to the crises in Burundi. In 2004, he was appointed by UK Prime Minister Tony Blair as one of the Commissioners taking part in the Commission for Africa. 

Dr Zenawi is married to Azeb Mesfin and has three children.