Half of the Cabinet: Explaining Ethiopia’s Move to Gender Parity in the Government

Abstract

Half a year after rising to the position of prime minister in Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed appointed a cabinet that included an unprecedented 50% women, including the first female minister of defense. This was noteworthy, because women had not been well-represented in Ethiopian political leadership. What motivated the appointment of so many women? We argue that the selection of ministers in aid-dependent global south countries responds to external cues—and that this leads to more women in the cabinet. Our findings regarding Ethiopia’s 50% female cabinet suggest that the role of external cues in cabinet selection deserves further investigation.