Genanaw Assefa leads the legal team of Ethiopian Airlines, Africa’s largest and most profitable airline. Assefa joined Ethiopian Airlines in 2008 as assistant general counsel and worked his way up through a number of senior roles, to become vice president legal counsel and corporate secretariat in September 2014.

The airline is part of a group of large state-owned Ethiopian companies known as the “Big Five” and its expansion has been rapid, recently adding 13 new destinations to its existing list of 82 and nearly doubling its profits in the financial year of 2016. Assefa has assisted with this expansion, being part of the company’s self-sufficient approach in training aviation personnel through its aviation academy which adopts a progressive culture to utilise strong leadership teams and a multi-hub strategy.

Under Assefa’s management the team has been recognised for handling of both domestic and international court litigation cases and civil matters as well as negotiation and executing complex cross-border transactions. His areas of strength have been noted for his success in contract work, unique financing matters and employment law issues. Assefa graduated from Addis Ababa University with a Bachelor of Laws and gained his Master of Laws from Peking University.