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10 Questions with Nancy Powell, Director General of the Foreign Service
By Jordan Smith at 20 July, 2010, 3:28 pm
The USGLC recently sat down with Nancy Powell, the Director General of the Foreign Service, to discuss the State Department’s progress and challenges in meeting the demand for not only more diplomats, but a new generation of diplomats.
Ms. Powell said that the Obama Administration is aiming to increase the Foreign Service–comprised of both Foreign Service Officers and Foreign Service Specialists–by 24% by 2015. In addition, the administration hopes to increase the Civil Service by 14% by 2015. Given the demand for FSOs in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq—over 1,000 positions need to be filled—and the growth of State and USAID as they work to handle new global issues and increase their presence in other parts of the world, hiring has jumped three-fold, according to Ms. Powell.
This personnel expansion represents the expansion of the State Department’s responsibility to include wartime stabilization, nation building, environmental policy, women’s rights, food security, and counterterrorism to a greater extent than ever before.
Continue reading for the full interview and offer your reactions in the comments section.
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Round-up on Haiti
By Jordan Smith at 5 April, 2010, 2:21 pm
Last week’s International Donors Conference on Haiti illustrated the power of diplomacy in action, as the international community pledged an impressive $15 billion over the next three years and beyond to help rebuild the country. Done right, Haiti can be a powerful example of what modern, coordinated development assistance can do. Many experts have remarked that Haiti was already on the rise before the earthquake with strategic plans to build up the economy, but now the bar is set even higher for the tiny island nation.
Haitian authorities, who had asked for about $4 billion in aid for the next 18 months, described the outpouring of support from the international community as “testimony that Haiti is not alone.” Being in the Western hemisphere, it’s in the strategic interests of the U.S. to help Haiti. From the beginning of the crisis, USAID has been leading the recovery efforts there with strong cooperation and assistance from both the diplomatic and military communities. Taking on the task of coordinating the aid efforts during his first week in office, USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah has won plaudits for his leadership in responding to the earthquake, demonstrating the ability of America’s civilian agencies to lead the way in U.S. foreign policy.
