Julie Koenen is the Deputy Assistant Administrator in Africa Bureau. In this capacity, she has responsibility for the Bureau’s Office of Sustainable Development (AFR/SD) and the Office of East African Affairs (AFR/EA). She has served as Director of AFR/SD, leading a team of sectoral specialists who provide technical analysis and assistance to support Agency leadership and USAID teams and programs in the field. Prior to her tenure in the Africa Bureau, Ms. Koenen was Deputy Mission Director for USAID/Nigeria (2013-2015). There she co-led the Embassy’s interagency process for planning and coordinating U.S. support to Nigeria’s response to the Boko Haram insurgency. She has also served as Director of the Office of Vulnerable Populations for USAID/Colombia (2011-2013); two tours in Pakistan, the first as Director of Democracy and Governance (2004-2007), and the second as Acting Deputy Mission Director for Karachi (2010-2011). She served as Senior Development Adviser to the Special Representative for Afghanistan & Pakistan (2009-2010). She also served a two-year tour in Iraq (2007-2009) as Director of the Office of Democracy & Governance, and a three-year tour (2001-2004) as USAID’s Country Program Manager in Sierra Leone.

Prior to joining USAID, she worked 11 years as senior project director for Management Systems International, a consulting firm specializing in governance, monitoring and evaluation, and development management. Her undergraduate degree is in International Relations and her graduate studies were in Public Management. She is a native of California.