U.S. Department of State Announces Official Trips to Africa

Dr. Gebisa Ejeta; Kerri-Ann Jones

Office of the Spokesperson
February 13, 2012

U.S. Science Envoy Gebisa Ejeta Travels to Ethiopia and Tanzania
On his second Envoy trip, U.S. Science Envoy Dr. Gebisa Ejeta will travel to Ethiopia and Tanzania February 13-24, 2012, where he will meet with senior government officials and representatives from the scientific, education, non-profit, and business communities. Dr. Ejeta will discuss cooperation on sustainable development, innovation, and university partnerships. President Obama announced the Science Envoy Program in Cairo on June 4, 2009. Since the program’s inception, six of America’s finest scientists have traveled to 17 countries on behalf of the United States Government to promote international partnerships through scientific collaboration. Dr. Ejeta was named a Science Envoy in September 2010 along with Dr. Rita Colwell and Dr. Alice Gast. In 2011, Dr. Ejeta traveled to South Africa.

Dr. Ejeta was chosen for his technical expertise and renown as an acclaimed plant breeder and geneticist. He is the Distinguished Professor of Plant Breeding and Genetics and International Agriculture at Purdue University. Among his many awards, he was the recipient of the 2009 World Food Prize and a national medal of honor from the President of Ethiopia. Dr. Ejeta was recently designated a Special Advisor to USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah and is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Assistant Secretary of State Kerri-Ann Jones to Travel to Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Kenya
Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs Dr. Kerri-Ann Jones will travel to Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Kenya February 13 – 22. In Ethiopia, Dr. Jones will meet with Ethiopian government officials, members of the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences, and others in the Ethiopian science community, including from the Natural Sciences Faculty of Addis Ababa University. As part of her visit, she will meet with members of the US-Ethiopian Business Forum. In addition, Dr. Jones will visit a clean cook-stove project site associated with the Global Alliance for Clean Cook Stoves (of which the U.S. Government is a founding member) and a new electronic waste recycling facility that receives USG support. In Tanzania, Dr. Jones will discuss education, health and the economic development aspects of conservation and sustainable tourism. She will visit community projects, meet with NGOs, and hold a roundtable with university students studying the natural sciences.

In Kenya, Dr. Jones will act as the United States’ Ministerial representative to the 12th Special Session of the Governing Council and Global Ministerial Environment Forum of the UN Environment Program. The Forum, taking place in Nairobi from Feb 20 – 22, will engage in interactive discussions under the overall theme of “the environmental agenda in the changing world.” It will focus on three topics: implications of the 5th Global Environment Outlook Report, the Green Economy, and the institutional framework for sustainable development.

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