upon graduation, dileita returned to djibouti, where he worked at the directorate-general of protocol under the presidency. he became the second ranking diplomat at the embassy of djibouti in france in early 1990, and subsequently he became ambassador to ethiopia in 1997. he also represented djibouti at the organization of african unity, headquartered in addis ababa, while serving as ambassador to ethiopia, and assisted in the peace talks that ended the 1998–2000 war between ethiopia and eritrea.