Peace Corps Director Aaron S. Williams Visits Tanzania

The Director of the Peace Corps Aaron Williams, the Peace Corps Country Director for Tanzania Andrea Wojnar-Diagne, Peace Corps volunteer Veronica Isabel Jacome, U.S. Ambassador to Tanzania Alfonso E. Lenhardt and the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Communication Science and Technology, Dr. Florens Turuka cut a cake to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps at a ceremony at the U.S. Embassy in Dar es Salaam on June 22, 2011. 


The Peace Corps was established in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy to promote peace and friendship around the world. Tanzania, the first country to receive Peace Corps volunteers, has hosted about 2,500 volunteers in the fields of education, health, agriculture, environment, and information and communication technology. (Photo: Courtesy of the U.S. Embassy).

Dar es Salaam – U.S. Peace Corps Director Aaron S. Williams visited Tanzania from June 19-24 to commemorate the Peace Corps’s 50^th anniversary in Tanzania and worldwide.  During his visit, Director Williams met with President of the United Republic of Tanzania Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, opened a ten-week training session for 40 Peace Corps Secondary School Teachers who are working hand in hand with Tanzanian communities, and attended a 50th anniversary celebration held on June 22 on the grounds of the U.S. Embassy in Dar es Salaam.

Speaking at the 50^th Anniversary Celebration, Director Williams noted “although we’ve come a long way since 1960, our journey is not complete. It’s a timeless idea – as vibrant today as it was half a century ago.  The inequities that existed half a century ago still loom large in much of our world:  poverty, disease, illiteracy, and hunger; often exacerbated by contemporary challenges, from climate change to HIV/AIDS.  The challenges to global peace and friendship still test us every day with suffering and conflict still afflicting too many people in too many places.  The passion and the hope, the empathy and the enthusiasm - what motivated (Peace Corps) volunteers in the 1960s still moves volunteers today, here in Tanzania and across 76 other countries.”

At present, 180 Peace Corps volunteers serve in Tanzania, including over 70 volunteer teachers, ranging in age from 23 to 80, serve as Math, Science, ICT teachers.  As of August 2011, 18 English instructors will be deployed in secondary schools throughout the country.  In addition, 55 Health Educators and Environmental Education promoters are also assigned throughout Tanzania.  The Peace Corps began operating in Tanzania in 1961 as one of the first country partners worldwide.  Since that time, over 2,500 Volunteers have served in Tanzania.

Peace Corps Director Aaron Williams is the third top U.S. official in President Barack Obama's administration to visit Tanzania in the month of June.  He visit was preceded by U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.  He was sworn in as the eighteenth Director of the Peace Corps on August 24, 2009.  Nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the U. S. Senate on August 7, 2009.


Mr. Williams is the fourth director in the Peace Corps’ history to have served as a Peace Corps Volunteer.  His service was rendered from 1967 - 1970 in the Dominican Republic.


 As Peace Corps celebrates its 50th anniversary, its service legacy continues to promote peace and friendship around the world, with 8,650 volunteers serving in 77 host countries. Historically, nearly 200,000 Americans have served with the Peace Corps to promote a better understanding between Americans and the people of 139 host countries. Peace Corps volunteers must be U.S. citizens and at least 18 years of age. Peace Corps service is a 27-month commitment.