Accra, Ghana – Andrew Karas was sworn in today as the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Mission Director for Ghana. In this capacity he will oversee USAID’s country-specific programs in agriculture, governance, economic growth, education, and health.

 

As Mission Director, Mr. Karas will be responsible for managing USAID’s programs and working with the Government of Ghana and other partners to accelerate Ghana’s transition towards established middle-income status. In Ghana, he will support programs that strengthen responsive democratic government, stimulate sustainable and broadly shared economic growth, effect equitable improvements in health status, and advance the reading performance of primary school students.

 

Mr. Karas has served as the Deputy Mission Director of USAID/Ghana since December 2012, and began serving as the Acting Mission Director in March 2015. 

 

Mr. Karas brings 30 years of development experience to the position. He joined the U.S. Foreign Service in 2000, with overseas assignments in Rwanda, Kenya, Afghanistan, and Djibouti. Prior to joining USAID, Mr. Karas worked with international and local development organizations in Rwanda and Kenya. He also managed community-based assistance programming for low-income and homeless populations in New York City. He served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Kenya 1985-1988, supporting rural women's groups on income-generating activities in the agricultural sector. Mr. Karas received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont, and a Master of Science in international agricultural development from the University of California, Davis in Davis, California. 

 

About USAID

USAID is the lead U.S. government agency that works to end extreme global poverty and enable resilient, democratic societies to realize their potential. For over 50 years, USAID has supported Ghana in increasing food security, improving basic health care, enhancing access to quality basic education, and strengthening local governance to benefit all Ghanaian people.