Travis L. Adkins currently serves as the politically appointed Deputy Assistant Administrator for Africa with the United States Agency for International Development.

As a foreign policy and international development leader, he has two decades of experience working in democracy and governance, civil society and advocacy, and refugee and migration affairs in over 50 nations throughout Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. This includes serving as Staff Director of the House Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Human Rights; working with leading international NGOs and think tanks; as well as within several branches of the United Nations system.

He is an alumnus of the International Affairs Fellowship at the Council on Foreign Relations, and a recipient of academic appointments from Georgetown, Carnegie Mellon, Ashesi (Ghana), and New York Universities. Travis is also the host and creator of the On Africa podcast, which engages diverse thought leaders in conversation on the continent’s politics, history, and culture.

Mr. Adkins has served in numerous international election observation missions in Africa and the Middle East with the National Democratic Institute; has been a regular contributor to national and international media outlets on African affairs; and is a Life Member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is also a graduate of Fisk University, one of our nation's illustrious Historically Black Colleges and Universities.