Former US president Bill Clinton once called him a ”renaissance leader” while a leaked 2009 US diplomatic cable described him as ”quiet, deliberative and certainly not a ‘man about town”’ adding he was a ”voracious reader and very introspective.”

He is credited with Ethiopia’s economic boom in the past decade, with economic growth shooting from 4 percent in the 1990s to 11 percent in 2010.

Zenawi, who has earned degrees in business from Britain’s Open University and in economics from Erasmus University in The Netherlands, lists his hobbies as reading, swimming and tennis.

Zenawi brooks no criticism: in 2005, nearly 200 people died in a crackdown on demonstrations by the opposition, who accused Meles of rigging elections, however most Ethiopians argue that he has done what it takes to stabilize the vast and ethnically diverse state.

His (zenawi) absence in the last three weeks is raising questions if Ethiopians are prepared for a succession or smooth power transition.

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