Abiy Ahmed
Rise to power
### Rise to power

Starting from 2015, Abiy became one of the central figures in the violent fight against illegal [land grabbing](/wiki/Land_grabbing "Land grabbing") activities in Oromia Region and especially around [Addis Ababa](/wiki/Addis_Ababa "Addis Ababa"). Although the Addis Ababa Master Plan at the heart of the land\-grabbing plans was stopped in 2016, the disputes continued for some time resulting in injuries and deaths. It was this fight against land\-grabbing, that finally boosted Abiy Ahmed's political career, brought him into the spotlight and allowed him to climb the political ladder.

In October 2015, Abiy became the Ethiopian [Minister of Science and Technology (MoST)](/wiki/Ministry_of_Science_and_Technology%2C_Ethiopia "Ministry of Science and Technology, Ethiopia"), a post which he left after only 12 months. From October 2016 on, Abiy served as Deputy President of [Oromia Region](/wiki/Oromia_Region "Oromia Region") as part of the team of Oromia Region's president [Lemma Megersa](/wiki/Lemma_Megersa "Lemma Megersa") while staying a member of the Ethiopian Federal House of Peoples' Representatives. Abiy Ahmed also became the head of the Oromia Urban Development and Planning Office. In this role, Abiy was expected to be the major driving force behind Oromia Economic Revolution, Oromia Land and Investment reform, youth employment as well as resistance to widespread land grabbing in Oromia region. As one of his duties in office, he took care of the one million displaced [Oromo people](/wiki/Oromo_people "Oromo people") displaced from the [Somali Region](/wiki/Somali_Region "Somali Region") from the 2017 unrest.

As head of the ODP Secretariat from October 2017, Abiy facilitated the formation of a new alliance between the [Oromo](/wiki/Oromo_people "Oromo people") and [Amhara](/wiki/Amhara_people "Amhara people") groups, which together constitute two\-thirds of the Ethiopian population.

In early 2018, many political observers considered Abiy and Lemma Megersa as the most popular politicians within the Oromo community, as well as other Ethiopian communities. This came after several years of unrest in Ethiopia. But despite this favourable rating for Abiy Ahmed and Lemma Megersa, young people from the Oromia region called for immediate action without delays to bring fundamental change and freedom to Oromia Region and Ethiopia – otherwise more unrest was to be expected. According to Abiy himself, people are asking for a different rhetoric, with an open and respectful discussion in the political space to allow political progress and to win people for democracy instead of pushing them.

Until early 2018, Abiy continued to serve as head of the ODP secretariat and of the Oromia Housing and Urban Development Office and as Deputy President of Oromia Region. He left all these posts after his election as the leader of the [Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front](/wiki/Ethiopian_People%27s_Revolutionary_Democratic_Front "Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front").


Who was Abiy Ahmed serving under as Deputy President of Oromia Region?