WASHINGTON: Raj Shah, the highest ranking Indian-American in the Obama Administration, has decided to quit as Administrator of the country’s global development agency after serving for nearly six years.
“It was with mixed emotions that I informed President Barack Obama and Secretary of State (John) Kerry that I will step down as Administrator in mid-February 2015,” Shah, 41, said in a statement yesterday.
Thanking Shah, who headed the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), President Obama said in a statement: “Shah has been at the center of my administration’s efforts to advance our global development agenda as the Administrator of the US Agency for International Development (USAID).”
“To be sure, his tasks have never been easy – responding to natural disasters, epidemics, and famine, to name just a few examples,” he said yesterday.
“But Shah, the son of proud Indian immigrants, has embodied America’s finest values by pro-actively advancing our development priorities, including ending global poverty, championing food security, promoting health and nutrition, expanding access to energy sources, and supporting political and economic reform in closed societies,” Obama said.
Joining Obama in praising Shah, Kerry said: “Shah has been an outstanding Administrator, a creative innovator, and a dynamic leader.”
“After five years, he absolutely deserves this transition, and he leaves USAID after making a dramatic mark – transforming this institution into one that’s more entrepreneurial, more modern, and more nimble, while promoting resilient democracies and battling extreme poverty across the globe,” he said.
Vice President Joe Biden described Shah as one of the most effective administrators of USAID.
Shah “has shown through five years as one of the most effective USAID Administrators in our nation’s history,” Biden said in a statement.
Shah had joined the Obama administration in 2009. In a statement, Shah said Obama’s call to end extreme poverty – made in two State of the Union addresses – re-energized USAID and elevated its work in the national security agenda.
“In the years since, we have seized upon this challenge, advancing a new model of development that harnesses the power of business and innovation to achieve this goal.
“With this new model, we have delivered meaningful results –
from fighting hunger, to educating girls, to tackling climate change, to fighting for civil society and democratic values,” he said.
“We are better positioned than at any other time in our 53-year history to solve the greatest challenges facing humanity,” he said.
House Democratic Whip Steny H Hoyer said under Shah’s leadership, USAID staff and volunteers have been making a huge difference around the world, bringing food, water, education, and hope to millions of people in need.
US Ambassador to the UN, Samantha Power said, Shah has spent the last five years working tirelessly to help improve the lives of hundreds of millions of people around the world.–PTI
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