Getahun earned doctorate in engineering from the University Duisburg-Essen in Germany, where he studied a DAAD scholarship holder.
Getahun worked as an assistant professor of electrical engineering at Addis Ababa University and has been director of the Siemens subsidiary in Ethiopia.
In November 2016, Getahun succeeded Abiy Ahmed as Minister of Science and Technology and served until 2018.
During his office, Getahun joined as advisor of XRP Ledger Foundation, a non-profit organization that promotes development of Ripple.
[2][3] On 6 October 2021, he left the minister during cabinet reshuffle, succeeded by Berhanu Nega.