Wednesday, August 1, 2018, Washington D.C.- Today Paul Sabatine was sworn in as the new U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission Director to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Mr. Sabatine will lead both the USAID DRC bilateral mission and the Central Africa Regional Operating Unit, which includes the Central African Regional Program for the Environment, as well as oversight of programs in the Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo.
Mr. Sabatine’s previous experience will serve him well in the DRC. His most recent assignment was as Senior Development Advisor for the USAID Libya Mission. Prior to that he served in Bangladesh, Mali, Pakistan, Afghanistan. In the DRC, he will lead a large and diverse team of local and international professionals, and oversee more than $500 million of development and humanitarian assistance in health, education, economic growth, environment, democracy and governance, conflict, and food aid programming.
Mr. Sabatine joined USAID in 1996 as a civil service Financial Management Specialist in the Bureau for Global Programs, Field Support and Research. He later served as an Investment Officer in the Bureau for Economic Growth, Agriculture and Trade, a Program Officer in the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance, and the Regional Coordinator for Africa in the Bureau for Program and Policy Coordination. As a member of the Senior Foreign Service, he has received numerous awards during his career, including several Meritorious and Superior Honor Awards from USAID and the State Department. In 1998, he received the USAID Inspector General’s Achievement Award, and in 2016, USAID’s Distinguished Honor Award in recognition of his leadership, resilience and inspirational management after the loss of a colleague by ISIS-affiliated terrorists in Bangladesh.
Paul Sabatine holds Masters degrees in International Trade and Investment Policy, and Business Administration, both from the George Washington University in Washington, DC. He also holds a Master’s degree in Theology from Mount Angel Seminary in St. Benedict, Oregon. He completed undergraduate studies at the Catholic University of America, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy. He speaks French, Spanish and Bangla.
About USAID
USAID is the International Development Agency of the Government of the United States. In the DRC, USAID works hand in hand with the Congolese people to implement a diverse portfolio of health, education, good governance, humanitarian assistance, agriculture, human rights, and environment programs.
