Washington, DC — Ambassador Pamela E Bridgewater (ret.) concludes four years as CEO and Board Chair of The Africa Society of the National Summit on Africa on September 1. Ambassador Bridgewater will continue to serve as a member of the Board. Patricia Baine now assumes duties as both President and CEO, and Board Member Pape Samb will serve as the Interim Board Chair.
“I have had the honor to serve as Board Chair and CEO of The Africa Society and build upon the rich work and legacies of my predecessors Leonard Robinson, Jr. and Bernadette Paolo in advocacy for and education about the African continent and peoples. I will now turn my focused attention to writing a memoir,” remarked Ambassador Bridgewater.
Patricia Baine notes that during Ambassador Bridgewater’s tenure, The Africa Society not only built upon existing programs but expanded the organization’s educational mandate. Some of the programming included, co-publishing with AMIP News, “United States and Africa Relations: The Obama Presidency” and establishing the first cohort of Africa Society Fellows through a grant from the US Embassy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Howard University managed Charles Rangel, Thomas Pickering and Donald Payne Fellows program. The outgoing CEO increased the number of Board Members and strengthened the financial base of The Africa Society, while, at the same time forming new partnerships across sectors to include US Government officials, think tanks and African leaders and Ambassadors. Ambassador Bridgewater, a former career United States Foreign Service Officer, served as an Ambassador to the Republic of Benin, the Republic of Ghana and Jamaica.
Pape Samb is the Global Vice President of Ashoka and Executive Director of Ashoka Africa. Among his previous positions, Samb served as President and CEO of Phelps Stokes and founded and served as Chairman and CEO of Global Youth Innovation Network (GYIN), a youth run and led network of 5,000 young leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators, and farmers in 100 countries. Mr. Samb is a globally respected social entrepreneur, championing youth entrepreneurship and economic empowerment.
The Africa Society of the National Summit on Africa is a Washington, DC-based 501(c) 3 non-profit organization that implements educational initiatives about Africa. We engage and educate Americans about Africa and create through partnerships a better understanding of its peoples, diverse cultures, histories and economies.
