Getachew Reda

Getachew Reda Kahsay ( Tigrinya and Amharic: ጌታቸው ረዳ ካሕሳይ; born June 1974) is an Ethiopian politician who is serving as the Minister Advisor for East African Affairs. Before this role, he served as the Chief Administrator of the Interim Regional Administration of Tigray, following his appointment by the Office of the Prime Minister of Ethiopia on 23 March 2023. Before assuming power as chief administrator, he was a longtime advisor to the former president of the Tigray Region, Debretsion Gebremichael.

Getachew was also an executive committee member and the spokesperson for the Tigray People's Liberation Front.

Getachew was the Minister of Government Communications Affairs in Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn's federal government of Ethiopia until 2016.

Early life and education

Getachew completed his undergraduate studies at Addis Ababa University's School of Law. Between 2001 and 2002, he completed a Master of Law at Alabama University, Tuscaloosa, United States. Before taking a government position in 2009, he served as a professor of law at Mekelle University, located in the capital city of Tigray Region.

Career

Tigray War

Getachew worked as the political advisor of the President of the Tigray Region, Debretsion Gebremichael, in supporting the Tigray Defense Forces (TDF) in their war with the federal government of Ethiopia, Amhara Special Forces, Fano militia and the foreign government of Eritrea. Getachew, in an interview with Tigray TV, urged young people and others in the region to "rise and deploy to battle in tens of thousands." In April 2021, Getachew's Twitter account was verified.

On 28 June 2021, Getachew announced that the TDF had captured Mekelle, causing the ENDF soldiers to retreat entirely from the area. The Ethiopian federal government declared a unilateral ceasefire starting from 28 June 2021 until the farming season ends. On 20 December 2021, Getachew announced that the TDF had withdrawn from both Amhara and Afar regions in an attempt to induce the international community to put pressure on the Ethiopian and Eritrean governments and to facilitate the distribution of humanitarian aid in the two conflict regions. However Billene Seyoum, the spokesman for Abiy Ahmed, disputed this claim and asserted that the announcement was a cover-up for military setbacks.

On 2 November 2022, Getachew was the Tigray representative present for the signing of the agreement to permanently cease hostilities with the Ethiopian central government.

After the Tigray War

On 23 March 2023, Getachew's appointment as head of the Interim Regional Administration of Tigray was announced.

In March 2025, ''The Guardian'' reported that a faction of the Tigray People's Liberation Front, led by Debretsion Gebremichael, took over several offices in the Tigray regional capital of Mekelle. In what it called a coup, it reported that armed men belonging to the faction patrolled the streets of Mekelle at night, checking people's identification. The Guardian also said that there are some reports suggesting that Eritrean intelligence helped Debretsion's faction assume power. Meanwhile, it reported that Getachew had fled to Addis Ababa..On 11 April 2025, it was announced that Getachew Reda had been appointed as Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali's Advisor for East African Affairs.

References

External links

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Addis Ababa backs creation of armed Tigrayan opposition in Afar region
Africa Intelligence, 14 May 2025 (requires free registration)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Getachew Reda
Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front politicians
Living people
1974 births
Tigray People's Liberation Front politicians
Addis Ababa University alumni
University of Alabama alumni
Politicians of the Tigray war