Meet the Ambassadors Unknown

Who was the first U.S. ambassador? What does it mean to have diplomatic relations with a country and why is it important? These questions and more are answered in our interview with Dr. Stephen Randolph the Historian of the U.S. Department of State.

Who are diplomats and what do they do? These are some of the questions we will answer in "Meet the Ambassador" a new podcast series that will introducing the American public to the Department of State employees working on behalf of the U.S. Government in various countries. “Meet the Ambassadors” will feature a series of one-on-one conversations with U.S. ambassadors in hopes of demystifying the role of a diplomat and introducing the more personal side of the men and women who represent the United States overseas.

Daniel W. Yohannes is the United States Ambassador to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). A former banker from Englewood, Colorado, Mr. Yohannes has more than 30 years of experience in banking and economic development. Prior to his appointment, Mr. Yohannes served for more than four years as the Chief Executive Officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), the independent U.S. foreign aid agency that is helping lead the fight against global poverty. Under his leadership, MCC started or completed investments of more than $9 billion in 25 countries on projects that lifted more than 173 million people out of poverty. In 2013, Mr. Yohannes was awarded the Secretary's Distinguished Service Award by then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in recognition of his outstanding leadership at MCC: goo.gl/gdj9vm.

The mission of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is to promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world. The OECD currently has 34 member states. Latvia will become an official member in July 2016 bringing the total number to 35.
For more information on the OECD, visit www.oecd.org/about/.

Meet Liliana Ayalde, the U.S. Ambassador to Brazil. Ambassador Ayalde first joined the Foreign Service in 1982 and started her international career in Dhaka, Bangladesh. She is a member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of Career Minister having been posted in Guatemala, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Colombia, and Washington, D.C. with USAID: goo.gl/0qAyx9.

Meet Mike Hammer, the U.S. Ambassador to Chile. Ambassador Hammer is a career member of the U.S. Senior Foreign Service and entered the diplomatic corps in 1988. He has served abroad in Bolivia, Norway, Iceland and Denmark. Ambassador Hammer has received several awards, including the Department’s Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Public Diplomacy.
Follow Ambassador Hammer on Twitter -> @MikeHammerUSA.

Meet Cynthia Akuetteh, the U.S. Ambassador to Gabon and the Democratic of Sao Tome and Principe. Ambassador Akuetteh previously served as Director of the Office of Central African Affairs, where she oversaw bilateral relations with ten countries, mostly unstable or in conflict. Before taking up the directorship of Central Africa, she was Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Abidjan from 2007-2009. She was the Deputy Chief of Mission in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso from 2005-2007. Previously she served as the Deputy Director of the Africa Bureau’s Economic Policy Staff, where she focused on the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and other trade issues.

Before joining the Foreign Service, Ambassador Akuetteh worked for Peace Corps and served as the Peace Corps Deputy Country Director for Ghana.

For more information on Ambassador Cynthia Akuetteh, visit goo.gl/AVQnEp.