Stephen M. Haykin has recently taken on the role of Senior Advisor to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Human Capital and Talent Management, and also served as the Acting Country Representative for Ivory Coast. Prior to these roles, Mr. Haykin served as Mission Director for Nigeria from June 2017 to August 2020, and USAID’s Senior Development Advisor to the Department of State’s Foreign Service Institute from September 2015 to April 2017. In this role, he advanced understanding of international development among employees of the Department of State, and he enhanced leadership training opportunities for USAID employees. He updated and co-facilitated training for new Mission Directors and Deputy Directors, with an emphasis on leadership and performance management skills.
From 2011 to 2015, Mr. Haykin served as USAID's Mission Director in Georgia. The Mission managed a wide variety of development programs including economic growth, democracy building, health, energy and social development. It was also responsible for the largest share of programs fulfilling the U.S. Government’s $1 billion pledge of assistance to Georgia after the conflict with Russia.
Haykin previously served as the Agency's Mission Director in the Democratic Republic of Congo where he was responsible for managing health, economic growth, democracy and governance, peace and security, environmental and humanitarian assistance programs worth more than $300 million. From 2005 to 2007, Haykin served as the Mission Director in Kenya. During his tenure there, USAID's country program grew from $120 million per year to $400 million. From 2004 to 2005, he served as Mission Director in Madagascar. Arriving as a Supervisory Project Development Officer in 2000, Haykin led the mission through Madagascar's political, economic and humanitarian crisis of 2002, for which he was recognized with a Distinguished Honor Award.
Haykin began his career with the Agency in 1986 through the International Development Intern program, and served as a Program Economist in the Africa Bureau, the Asia and Near East Bureau, and in Kenya, DRC, Guinea and Ghana. He also served as a Program Officer in the Europe and Eurasia Bureau.
Haykin has a bachelor's degree from Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, and master's degrees in economics and foreign service from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. He speaks French fluently.