Program archives

Herman J. Cohen is a retired Ambassador and career diplomat from New York City who currently serves as President of the consulting firm Cohen and Woods International which specializes in providing strategic advisory services to African governments and business services to American companies engaged in trade and investment in Africa.

Mr. Cohen is retired from the Department of State where he served for 38 years in the Foreign Service specializing in African affairs. During his tenure, he served at American embassies in Uganda, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Zaire, and Senegal. His Washington responsibilities included Director for Central Africa, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Intelligence and Research, and Senior Director for Africa at the National Security Council under President Reagan. During his National Security Council assignment he worked closely with Chester A. Crocker who presided over negotiations leading to the independence of Nambia and assisted in resolving conflicts in Angola, Mozambique, Ethiopia, South Africa, Rwanda, the Sudan, Liberia, and Somalia. His book: Intervening in Africa: Superpower Peacemaking in a Troubled Continent, was published in September 2000 by St. Martin's Press (New York) and MacMillan (UK). The American Academy of Diplomacy gave his book its award for the best writing on diplomacy for the year 2000. From August 1993 to December 1998, Mr. Cohen worked under contract for the World Bank as Senior Advisor to the Global Coalition for Africa, promoting dialogue and consensus on key development issues between African governments and their donor partners. His honors and awards include the rank of Career Ambassador in the Foreign Service (1992), the Distinguished Senior Foreign Service Presidential Award (1993), the French Legion of Honor (1991), the Belgian Order of Leopold II (1992), and the Distinguished Alumni Award of the City College of New York (1992).

Mr. Cohen discussed how Africa fits into the global view in terms of the terrorist threat, the scramble for resources, and the challenge of economic development.