USAID Swears in the First Mission Director to South Sudan

WASHINGTON, July 7, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As SouthSudan prepares for independence on July 9, the U.S. Agency forInternational Development (USAID) swore in Kevin Mullally as thefirst mission director to the new country. Stationed in Juba, SouthSudan, Mullally will oversee a development program that will focuson developing the promising agriculture sector; delivering essentialservices including health and education to citizens; strengtheninggovernance that is effective, inclusive, and accountable; andhelping to prevent or mitigate conflict. USAID Counselor Hilda M.Arellano administered the oath of office at the swearing-inceremony.

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With nearly 30 years in the Foreign Service, Mullally hasextensive USAID experience in Africa. He recently served as missiondirector in Senegal from 2007 to 2011, as mission director in Rwandafrom 2005 to 2007, and as deputy mission director in Mali from 2002to 2005.

He also has extensive experience in agriculture assistance, whichis a major focus of the South Sudan mission. He was director of theFood and Agriculture Office at the Bangladesh mission from 1992 to1995 and deputy director of the Agriculture Development Office inHaiti (1989-1992) and in Niger (1984-1989).

Mullally also served as office director for Human andInstitutional Development at USAID's Ethiopia mission from 1997 to2002 and as supervisory general development officer in Mali from1995 to 1997. His first assignment for USAID was in 1982 in UpperVolta (now Burkina Faso), where he managed a forestry developmentproject.

In June 2011, Senegal awarded Mullally one of the nation'shighest honors, Officier de l'Ordre National du Merite, for hisleadership in supporting education in Senegal through a USAIDprogram that repaired or built more than 100 middle schools, donatedmore than 2 million textbooks, provided Internet connections formore than 408 rural schools, improved curricula and schoolmanagement by local administrators and parent associations, andpromoted public-private partnership in education.

Prior to joining USAID, Mullally was a Peace Corps volunteer inChad and Niger, where he worked in forestry. He earned a Bachelor ofScience degree in Forestry from Stephen F. Austin State Universityin Nacogdoches, Texas, and a Master of Arts in InternationalManagement Studies from the University of Texas at Dallas.

Raised in Liberty, New York, Mullally is married with twochildren.

In addition, Peter Natiello will become USAID's Deputy MissionDirector for South Sudan this month.

For more information about USAID and its programs in South Sudan,please visit www.usaid.gov.

The American people, through the U.S. Agency for InternationalDevelopment, have provided economic and humanitarian assistanceworldwide for nearly 50 years.

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SOURCE U.S. Agency for International Development