Attorney Veena Reddy Sworn in as First Indian American USAID Mission Director
File photo of Veena Reddy, USAID/Cambodia’s Mission Director, speaking last year on civic tech tools. (usaid.gov photo)
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Agency for International Development July 26 announced the swearing in of Veena Reddy as the first Indian American to become its Mission Director.
“Today, Veena Reddy was sworn-in as our new Mission Director. She will be the first Indian American to lead USAID-India, representing the best of both countries, and aims to bolster U.S.-India development partnership leveraging her unique experiences and leadership,” tweeted USAID.
“Best wishes, Veena USAID-India. India-USAID partnership has the potential to make a difference to the lives of people not only in India and U.S., but across the world!” tweeted Ambassador of India to the United States Taranjit Singh Sandhu.
Reddy, a Foreign Service Officer with the organization, is USAID/Cambodia’s Mission Director.
She arrived in Cambodia in August 2017 and currently oversees a staff of 75 as well as USAID programs in the food security, environment, health, education, child protection, and democracy and governance sectors.
She has served as Deputy Mission Director in Haiti, where she oversaw post-earthquake reconstruction efforts, elections support, economic growth, food security interventions, hurricane response, and the development of a new strategy.
Prior to this posting, Reddy served in Washington as an Assistant General Counsel, covering legal matters for USAID’s programs in Asia, Middle East, and Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Indian American attorney has also served in USAID missions in Pakistan, the Central Asian Republics and Central America.
Prior to her government service, Reddy was a corporate attorney at Rogers & Wells in New York and at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer and Feld in London and Los Angeles.
Reddy holds a Juris Doctorate from Columbia University School of Law and an MA and BA from the University of Chicago. She is a member of the New York and California bars.
