New USAID mission director arrives in Dhaka

The new mission director for the US Agency for International Development (USAID) in Bangladesh Reed Aeschliman has arrived in Bangladesh.

He joined the US mission in Bangladesh as a senior leader with vast knowledge of the South Asia region, said a press release of the US embassy in Dhaka today.

Reed Aeschliman is committed to strengthening relations with Bangladesh as a key strategic partner in major development initiatives, including food security, economic growth, climate change, health, democracy, human rights, and governance, added the release.

"I am excited to be in Dhaka and look forward to deepening our strong partnership with the people of Bangladesh to achieve the shared goal of helping this nation become an upper middle-income country by 2031," said Aeschliman.

Reed Aeschliman is a career member of the United States Senior Foreign Service.

Prior to his assignment as Mission Director to Bangladesh, Aeschliman served as USAID Mission Director in Pakistan from 2022-2023, in Sri Lanka and Maldives from 2018-2022, and has also served in leadership positions in the Philippines and Pacific Islands, as well as Afghanistan, Cambodia, and India.

He also held positions in Washington, DC as deputy assistant administrator in USAID's Bureau for Asia Affairs, and as the director of the Office of Energy and Infrastructure in the Bureau for Economic Growth, Education, and Environment.

Before joining USAID in 2000, Aeschliman served as a US Peace Corps volunteer in Thailand.