My First Job: Dagmawit Bekele

Lindy Mtongana: Hello and welcome to IFC Audio Stories. I’m Lindy Mtongana. Today we bring you another installment of My First Job where senior leaders share how they landed their very first jobs, the challenges they’ve navigated and the lessons that shaped their careers. My guest is Ms. Dagmawit Bekele the Director of the African Union’s Peace Fund Secretariat, who previously served as Ethiopia’s first women Minister of Transport. Thanks once again, Dagmawit for joining me today on this podcast. So let's get straight to it. Tell me about your very first job and the key lessons you learned from it? 

Dagmawit Bekele: My first job ever was working for one local, NGO, while I was a student at the University, undergraduate student. And I was serving there as a communication officer of that particular local NGO.  And then I started teaching at the university in the same department that I graduated from.  

Lindy: And what was that? What were you studying? 

Dagmawit: I studied public administration and development management, and actually I knew that I'm going to join such kind of department while I was in grade nine.  

Lindy: How did you know? What was the feeling at grade nine that already made you know for sure that you wanted a life of public service? 

Dagmawit: I was a student council president while I was at school, and I consider myself that I'm responsible to be there for my friends, to be a good model in character and education and everything that I do. And I feel like I'm responsible for them. I don't know why, and I was, you know, it gives me some kind of fulfillment to be there for them, to give guidance and counseling, to address their challenge. We used to arrange classes voluntarily to support other students who are struggling with their results and support them, and we really wanted to make sure that our batch is the best batch with the highest result, and we really don't want to leave anyone behind. So those of us who were somehow at the front lane, we took extra time to support those students that are struggling, so that we all are going to make it all together. So this kind of feeling and attitude is something that really made me to think and to feel that I'm going to study management, I'm going to study administration, and do whatever I can to contribute to the community.   

So that feeling is one of the reasons that made me to go to that local NGO and give it back to the community, and change the livelihoods of our people. And I don't see anything as rewarding as serving the people and see them being changed.  

After I taught for a couple of years at the university, I had the honor and the chance to serve in the city administration, as a general manager of one particular sub city. And after that, I had the honor of serving as the bureau head of the micro and small enterprises, of Addis Ababa city government. And at that time, you know those youngsters who were struggling to get job, they will come to the office of micro and small enterprises. We give them training. We make sure that they get financed through the micro finance institutions.  And by combining this skill training finance, they establish their own business. And when you see  them after a year or so  and while they're much better off, it is really rewarding to see them change. It's like in such a short period of time  and being responsible and start to manage to address the challenge of their families, to address the challenge or their community and it's really rewarding. And I actually I enjoyed the path, and I can say that I’m living my dream, I’m living my passion and I had the honor and the privilege of serving the city residents for about 10 years,  until the rank of Deputy Mayor, being the first female Deputy Mayor of the city government and then being promoted to federal level, to the country level, until the rank of a minister, being the first ever female transport and logistics Minister of my country.  

And I had the honor of drafting number of policies and taking it to the cabinet and taking it to the parliament and make sure that that policy is adopted and implemented so that the lives  of our people is going to be, you know, better off. 

Lindy: And so from helping your city to helping your country, you're now helping your continent. True. I mean, that's incredible. You're now the Director of the Peace Fund, Secretariat of the African Union. And for those who might not be familiar with it, the peace fund is essentially the financial backbone of the continent’s peace and security efforts. So it funds conflict mediation, diplomacy, crisis response operations, and institutional capacity building. You’ve been at the helm of the Fund Secretariat since 2023, during which time you have overseen an enormous growth in the funds balance. Tell us about that.  

Dagmawit: The Peace Fund was established as one of the funds of the African Union in 1993 during the time of OAU even, preceding the African Union itself.  

But from 1993 until 2018 it was only possible to mobilize 25 million USD.  But after the decision has been made by our heads of states and government to revitalize the AU Peace Fund the whole governing structure of the peace fund has been adjusted. We have the peace fund secretariat which I run as a director. We also have private sector fund managers. And it is for the very first time in the 61 / 62 years of the AU history that we started to use the private sector fund managers to manage our fund.  Currently we have a balance of 403 million USD as the endowment fund of the AU Peace Fund. And 400 million, Starting from 2018 up to now speaks loud. If member states are determined for conflict prevention, which the Peace Fund is responsible to do, they can make it happen.  

Lindy: It's interesting that you decided to engage private sector fund managers to mobilize funds. And it raises the broader question of the private  sectors role in peace efforts in Africa.  

Dagmawit: The issue of peace and stability is not the sole responsibility of government. Private sector has a stake, because peace and security and stability is a prerequisite for any investment and for any business, even for job creation. Because private sector engagement means employment. It's job creation.  

Lindy: You went from being a communications officer as a student at a small NGO, and here you are leading the financing of peace efforts on the African continent at the African Union. Tell me what advice you would give to your younger self or to young people who are at the start of their careers with big dreams and big hopes. 

Dagmawit: I would say, believe in yourself. You can do it. Keep on breaking the glass ceilings but nobody is going to come and give it to you unless and otherwise you go there and take it, grab the opportunity and prove yourself. But that's not going to be an easy journey, but it is possible.   

Lindy: Beautifully said, beautifully said, Thank you so much for your time. It's been an absolute pleasure speaking to you.  

Dagmawit: Thank you for having me