Nov 8 , 2025
The National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) has approved three new board members for Ethiopian Reinsurance S.C., Birhanu Belayneh Fufa, Endalkachew Zelekew, and Tefera Wondimu W. Mariyam completing the company's nine-member board. The decision, however, has drawn criticism over governance imbalances, shareholder exclusion, and weakened independent oversight. Insiders note that six of the nine directors represent themselves as individual shareholders, despite the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) and Ethiopian Insurance Corporation (EIC) which jointly hold 40pc of shares and have reached the end of their term, being excluded from board representation. The change departs from EthioRe's previous six-member structure that included broader stakeholder input. Endalkachew Zelekew and Belay Gorfu reportedly won seats through minority shareholder votes, sidelining major institutional investors. Industry observers argue that this undermines proportional representation and contradicts the NBE's directive for balanced and inclusive governance. The new board includes Dagnachew Mehari, chairperson and CEO of Bunna Insurance; Yonas Belay, vice chairperson; Meseret Bezabih; Belay Gorfu, representing Nib Bank; Kelebessa Kera; Zufan Abebe, CEO of Nib Insurance; and the three newly appointed members.
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