Washington, DC - On August 6, 2010, Susan Fritz was sworn in as Mission Director of the USAID Mission to Serbia and Montenegro at a ceremony officiated by Hilda Arellano, Counselor for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

Ms. Fritz's responsibilities as Mission Director will include overseeing USAID's annual $40 million Serbia and $5 million Montenegro programs. These programs focus on civil society, rule of law, media independence, good governance, private sector development, agriculture sector productivity, and the business-enabling environment.

Most recently, she served as Deputy Mission Director of USAID/Kosovo, overseeing an annual program budget that peaked at $90 million in FY 2008. Her previous positions include Regional Democracy Officer based out of USAID/Bulgaria, Director of the Democracy and Conflict Mitigation Office for USAID/Central Asia, Elections and Political Process Team Leader in the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance (DCHA), and Chief Democracy Officer for USAID/Bosnia. As Chief Democracy Officer, Fritz helped set up USAID's first Mission to Bosnia in1996, shortly after the Dayton Accords ended that country's civil war.

Ms. Fritz joined USAID in 1989 and has served in Washington, D.C., Bosnia, Central Asia, Bulgaria and Kosovo.

She received her Master's Degree in Public Administration from American University in 1989, and a B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University in 1986.

For more information about USAID, visit www.usaid.gov.