ZAMBIA – The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has appointed Zambian-born Monde Muyangwa as the Assistant Administrator to the Bureau for Africa, the United States Embassy in Zambia said on its website.

United States President Joe Biden has appointed Zambian American Dr. Monde Muyangwa to serve as the Assistant Administrator in the Bureau for Africa and to support the execution of the United States African development agenda.

Dr. Muyangwa brings to the table an impressive combination of personal and professional experience and is uniquely suited to help guide the United States African development agenda forward, the US Embassy in Zambia highlights.

The new Assistant Administrator Dr. Monde Muyangwa previously served as the Director of the Wilson Center’s Africa Program where she led programs designed to analyze and offer practical, actionable options for addressing some of Africa’s most critical, current, and over-the-horizon issues.

Dr. Muyangwa also led programs designed to foster policy-focused dialogue about and options for stronger and mutually-beneficial US-Africa relations and challenge the dominant narrative about Africa by enhancing knowledge and understanding of the continent in the United States.

Dr. Muyangwa has also worked as a development and gender consultant, and on a wide range of development projects in southern Africa in the areas of education, housing, health, and nutrition.

Prior to joining the Wilson Center, Monde served as Academic Dean at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies (ACSS) at the National Defense University from 2002 to 2013 where she oversaw all curriculum and programs at ACSS.

She also currently serves on the Board of Trustees at Freedom House and on the Board of Directors at the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF).

In addition, Dr. Muyangwa holds a Ph.D. in International Relations and a B.A. in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics from the University of Oxford as well as a B.A. in Public Administration and Economics from the University of Zambia.

She was also a Rhodes Scholar specifically a Wingate Scholar and the University of Zambia Valedictory Speaker for her graduation class.

During her recent United States Senate confirmation hearing, Dr. Muyangwa said, “While the narrative about Africa is too often dominated by its challenges, the Africa that I know is also characterized by resilience, transformation and promise.”

She pointed out that the African continent’s resilience and transformation were partially evidenced by African innovations to mitigate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, expanding tech hubs and the people fighting to safeguard democracy.

She further said that various developments in the continent have reinforced her belief that Africa’s people, particularly its youth, are the continent’s greatest resource.

Commenting on Muyangwa’s appointment, USAID Administrator Samantha Power noted that Dr. Muyangwa’s arrival comes as the Biden Administration released the US Strategy Toward Sub-Saharan Africa last month.

USAID Administrator Power further said that the US Strategy marks an important milestone for the administration as the strategy underscores something Monde has fiercely advocated throughout her career specifically a recognition that America’s future and the continent’s future are inextricably linked.

Now, after years of devotion to her education, after moving across the ocean and never backing down, Monde will continue to fulfill the commitment she made as a young girl, to give back to Zambia and to give back Africa,” Power added.

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