Addis Ababa, Ethiopia — On August 1, 2012, Wallace R. Bain joined the United States Mission to the African Union (USAU) as Deputy Chief of Mission. He will serve concurrently as the Deputy Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa.

Prior to his assignment to USAU, Mr. Bain served in the Political Section at the United States Embassy in Paris, with a focus on African issues.

From 2006-2009, Mr. Bain was the Chief of the Economic Section at the U.S. Embassy in Dakar, Senegal, and has had diplomatic assignments at the United States Embassies in Nairobi, Kenya; Tunis, Tunisia; and Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire. He also served in the State Department's Office of Japanese Affairs in Washington, DC.

In addition to his years of experience and work on the African continent, Mr. Bain maintains a keen professional interest in advancing U.S. engagement with the African Union on areas of mutual interest, including conflict resolution, peace building, and democratic governance.