ADDIS ABABA, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopia will start nationwide commemoration events on Saturday to pay tribute to the country's long-serving late prime minister, Meles Zenawi.
Zenawi, who passed away in August 2012 at the age of 57, is considered a central figure in masterminding Ethiopia's current development agenda, bringing double-digit economic growth to a country once seen as one of the poorest on the African continent.
Before becoming prime minister in 1995, Zenawi had served as president of the transitional government of Ethiopia from 1991 to 1995.
Azeb Mesfin, the widow of Zenawi and president of Meles Zenawi Foundation, told reporters on Friday that commemoration activities are scheduled for the coming days, including sports events snf consultative meetings on various topics.
Ethiopia's current Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, speaking during Zenawi's first-year memorial service, praised the late premier as "a strong leader who builds the Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) and Ethiopia on strong democratic and developmental foundations."
The EPRDF is the ruling party of Ethiopia, Africa's second most populous nation.
