Justice Meaza Ashenafi Mengistu served as Ethiopia’s first female Chief Justice from November 2018 until January 2023. Under her leadership, the Federal Supreme Court has embarked on a comprehensive judicial reform. In regards to gender mainstreaming, she led to increase the number of women judges by 30%, created specialized benches for women and children, and instituted a bench-book for judges handling cases of violence against women and took capacity development measures. 

Previously, Meaza co-founded the Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association (EWLA) where she served as the Executive Directress for eight years. The organization has led an effective research and advocacy campaign that led to the reform of four key laws to affirm gender equality. EWLA provided legal representation and counsel to hundreds of thousands of vulnerable women. Meaza has also co-founded Enat Bank, the first women’s bank in Ethiopia with the goal of ensuring financial inclusion of women. This nationwide bank has over 200 branches and offers financial solutions catered to female-led start-ups, among other services. She chaired the Bank’s Board of Directors for six years. 

Furthermore, Meaza has contributed to the promotion of African women’s rights in her capacity as Gender Advisor at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa over several years. 

Her work has received international recognition including the African Leadership Prize, Hunger Project Award and Women of Courage for Ethiopia Award by the US Government in 2008 among many others. Difret, a feature film based on Meaza’s work as a young lawyer and women’s rights activists, was released in 2014 and went on to win an award at the Sundance Festival and was a nominee at the 87th Academy Awards. 

Recently she established the Meaza Ashenafi Mentorship and Empowerment Initiative, a program with a public service agenda.