UNITED STATES SENATE
SUBJECT: Ambassadorial Nomination: Certificate of
Demonstrated Competence — Foreign Service
Act, Section 304(a)(4)
POST: Republic of Burundi
CANDIDATE: Lisa J. Peterson
Lisa J. Peterson, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Minister Counselor, currently serves as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. Previously, Ms. Peterson served as the U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Eswatini. Prior to that, she served as the Director, Office of Multilateral and Global Affairs, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor and before that as the Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Yaounde, Cameroon. Ms. Peterson’s demonstrated success as a leader in foreign assignments and in Washington, coupled with her extensive experience in African affairs makes her a well-qualified candidate to serve as Ambassador to the Republic of Burundi.
Among her other assignments, Ms. Peterson served as Cultural Affairs Officer at U.S. Embassy Abuja, Nigeria, as Deputy Director of the Department’s Office of Central African Affairs, and as a Political Officer U.S. Embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, Lusaka, Zambia and Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. She also was an Analyst in the Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research, Vice Consul at the U.S. Consulate General Durban, South Africa, and Vice Consul/Political Officer at U.S. Embassy Bangui, Central African Republic. Before joining the Foreign Service she worked in the University of Rochester’s Department of Chemistry and the University’s Carlson Mathematics and Sciences Library.
Ms. Peterson earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Rochester, Rochester, New York. She has received numerous Department performance awards and speaks French.