Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs
The Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of African Affairs is an office in the United States Department of State .
History of the office
After the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had established three geographical areas in 1909, responsibility for African affairs lay with the areas for the Middle East (Division of Near Eastern Affairs) and for Western Europe (Division of Western European Affairs) . By Ministerial Decree No. 692 of June 15, 1937, responsibility for all African territories, with the exception of Algeria and the South African Union, was transferred exclusively to the area for the Middle East. In January 1944 a separate working group for African affairs was created within the field for the Middle East.
After the Bureau of Near Eastern, South Asian, and African Affairs was established in 1949 under the direction of an Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern, South Asian, and African Affairs , it continued to exist separate subject area for Africa within this office.
On July 18, 1958, the US Congress authorized the appointment of an eleventh Assistant Secretary of State , thereby enabling the State Department to create a subdivision for the newly independent states of Africa. Responsibility for relations with the nations of North Africa was assumed on April 22, 1974 by the Bureau of Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs .
The Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs heads the Bureau of African Affairs in the State Department. As such, he heads the operations of the diplomatic missions abroad in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa and is also an advisor to the US Secretary of State and the US Deputy Secretary of State . Within US foreign policy, four pillars serve to justify relations with Africa: strengthening democratic institutions, supporting African economic growth and development, promoting peace and security, and promoting opportunity and development.
The subdivision head is supported in his work by a Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for African Affairs as the first deputy subdivision head and further Deputy Assistant Secretaries who, as heads of department, are responsible for the East Africa and regional security units (Deputy Assistant Secretary, East African and Regional Security) , West Africa and Economic Affairs (Deputy Assistant Secretary, West Africa and Economic Affairs) , Central Africa and Public Diplomacy (Deputy Assistant Secretary, Central Africa and Public Diplomacy) , South Africa, Sudan and South Sudan (Deputy Assistant Secretary, Southern Africa and Sudan & South Sudan) as well West Africa economic and regional Affairs (Deputy Assistant Secretary, West Africa and economic & regional Affairs) .
List of Assistant Secretaries of State for African Affairs
| portrait | Surname | Beginning of the term of office | Term expires | Acting US President |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Joseph C. Satterthwaite | 2nd September 1958 | January 31, 1961 | Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy |
| G. Mennen Williams | February 1, 1961 | March 23, 1966 | John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson | |
| Joseph Palmer II | April 11, 1966 | 7th July 1969 | Lyndon B. Johnson | |
| David D. Newsom | 17th July 1969 | January 13, 1974 | Richard Nixon | |
| Donald B. Easum | March 18, 1974 | March 26, 1975 | Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford | |
| Nathaniel Davis | April 2nd, 1975 | 18th December 1975 | Gerald Ford | |
|
William E. Schaufele, Jr. | 19th December 1975 | 17th July 1977 | Gerald Ford |
| Richard M. Moose | July 6, 1977 | January 16, 1981 | Jimmy Carter | |
| Chester Crocker | June 9, 1981 | April 21, 1989 | Ronald Reagan | |
| Herman Jay Cohen | May 12, 1989 | February 26, 1993 | George HW Bush | |
| George Moose | April 2, 1993 | August 22, 1997 | Bill Clinton | |
|
Susan E. Rice | October 9, 1997 | January 20, 2001 | Bill Clinton |
|
Walter H. Kansteiner III | June 4, 2001 | November 1, 2003 | George W. Bush |
|
Constance Berry Newman | June 24, 2004 | August 26, 2005 | George W. Bush |
|
Jendayi Frazer | August 29, 2005 | January 20, 2009 | George W. Bush |
|
Johnnie Carson | May 7, 2009 | March 30, 2013 | Barack Obama |
|
Donald Yamamoto | March 30, 2013 | 5th August 2013 | Barack Obama |
|
|
Linda Thomas-Greenfield | August 6, 2013 | March 10, 2017 | Barack Obama and Donald Trump |
Web links
- Entry on the page of the Office of the Historian of the US State Department
- Bureau of African Affairs on the U.S. Department of State website (accessed June 3, 2016)