President Biden Names Silicon Valley Woman to White House African Diaspora Council

PHOTO Almaz Negash of The African Diaspora 
WRITTEN BY MCKENZIE JACKSON | CALIFORNIA BLACK MEDIA .

African Diaspora Network (ADN) founder and executive director Almaz Negash has uplifted and championed investment in businesspersons, entrepreneurs, and innovators of African descent in U.S. communities and across the African continent for 13 years.

Negash, a native of the East African country Eritrea, who resides in the Bay Area, is now set to do similar work for the administration of President Joe Biden. Negash was appointed to the President’s Advisory Council on African Diaspora Engagement (PAC-ADE) in late September.

Last month, Negash told California Black Media that PAC-ADE can help Africans in the Diaspora be a bridge between the U.S. and the African countries they hail from.

“The African Diaspora Network has been bringing Africans and friends of Africa together to talk about things we can do on the continent,” she stated. “Whether it’s through entrepreneurship, investment, and other ways. If you really look at it, you can reverse it and do the same thing in the United States.”

ADN is based in the Silicon Valley city of Santa Clara. Most of the organization’s leaders are affiliated with the Bay Area’s tech and business communities, even though the impact of the work they do is felt far beyond that region.

Negash, who has a background in international business, hopes the committee can change policies that will allow Black entrepreneurs in the U.S. and in Africa to thrive.

“The same thing that African Americans face here is also faced by Black entrepreneurs on the continent,” she said. “I want to share knowledge and resources but also shed light on the challenge Blacks face like access to funding.”

Negash was one of 12 people selected for the inaugural advisory group for terms that run until 2025. The appointees represent the diversity of the African Diaspora from Black and African communities. PAC-ADE members have distinguished backgrounds from a variety of industries including academia, business, creative industries, faith-based activities, government, sports, and social work.

Delaware’s Silvester Scott Beaman, the 139th elected and consecrated Bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, is the council’s chair.

Another Californian, Ugandan-born Ham K. Serunjogi, the co-founder and CEO of Chipper Cash, a cross-border money transfer platform, is also a councilmember.

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