Ombeni Y. Sefue

Tanzanian Ambassador to the United States

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) call for major improvements in the human condition by 2015. The goals are aimed primarily at improving life for people in the poorest countries and place much of the burden to achieve the goals upon these nations. How is Tanzania faring in its objectives of halving extreme poverty and hunger by the year 2015? What are the prospects for achieving universal primary education and gender equity by then? What will it take to reduce under-five mortality rate—118 per 1000 in 2006—by two thirds (the U.S. by comparison is 7.8 and ranked 33rd in the world; Tanzania ranked 165th)?

A career diplomat, Ambassador Ombeni Y. Sefue became Tanzania’s Ambassador to the U.S. in June 2007 following two years as his country’s High Commissioner to Canada. From 1993 to 2005 he served two Tanzanian presidents—Hassan Mwinyi and Benjamin William Mkapa—as Speechwriter and Personal Assistant. He was involved with the Commission for Africa (commonly known as The Blair Commission) that produced Our Common Interest—the document that served as the basis for discussions at the G8 Summit in July 2005. He has been involved in the peace process for the Great Lakes Region, the World Economic Forum in Davos, and the Sino-African Forum in Cape Town.

In Tanzania, Ambassador Sefue worked with Hernando de Soto’s Institute for Liberty and Democracy to establish a Property and Business Formalization Program for Tanzania, and with the Clinton Foundation’s HIV/AIDS Initiative. With President Mkapa he was involved in a far-reaching and extensive political and economic reform process in Tanzania that included significant improvements in the macroeconomic framework and the business climate.

Ambassador Sefue studied Public Policy and Administration at what is today Mzumbe University and later earned an M.A. (with distinction) in the same field at the Institute of Social Studies (ISS) at The Hague in 1981. He holds a Post-Graduate Diploma in International Relations and Diplomacy from the Tanzania-Mozambique Center for Foreign Relations in Dar es Salaam and has certificates in International Negotiations and in Economic and Social Problems of Developing Countries.

The Ambassador will be in Portland to observe World Water Day with a series of events sponsored by Portland Roasting and PSU. More information on events in Portland.