By Awaal Gata Abuja
Th e US Ambassador to Nigeria, Stuart Symington, has swornin Mr. Stephen M. Haykin as the new Nigeria’s Director for the US Agency for International Development (USAID). A statement by the US embassy in Abuja yesterday revealed that the ambassador had already sworn in the new country director. According to the statement, Haykin will oversee all aspects of USAID/Nigeria’s development programmes, valued at nearly $500 million annually, in agriculture, democracy, governance, economic growth, education, power, and health, as well as USAID’s humanitarian response in the North-east. Haykin has a Bachelor’s Degree from Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, and Master’s Degree in Economics and Foreign Service from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. In 2002, he was awarded the Distinguished Honor Award by USAID. In the course of a 30-year career as a USAID Foreign Service Offi cer, Mr. Haykin has experience in international economics, general development, and delivery of humanitarian assistance. He previously served as Mission Director in Georgia, where he managed activities on economic growth, democracy building, health, energy, and social development. He has also served as Mission Director in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, and Madagascar.
