Abolition of Offices Dedicated to Women's Issues and Diversity
The Donald Trump administration has restructured the State Department, the agency responsible for foreign affairs, significantly downsizing organizations related to democracy and human rights improvement.
On April 22 (local time), Mako Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State, announced this State Department reorganization plan.
Notably, the position of Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights has been eliminated in this restructuring. Instead, the State Department has created a new Coordinator for Foreign Assistance and Humanitarian Affairs. The Coordinator is expected to take on the responsibilities previously handled by the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights, as well as the foreign assistance duties formerly overseen by the now effectively disbanded U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Previously, the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights oversaw four assistant secretaries and three special envoys. Under the new Coordinator system, only the Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Religious Freedom and the Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees, and Migration will remain. The Assistant Secretary for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement has been transferred to the Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, and the three special envoy positions have been eliminated.
The office directly under the Secretary, which handled global women's issues and diversity and inclusion, has been abolished.
Earlier, some foreign media reported that the Africa Bureau, which had been overseen by the Under Secretary for Political Affairs, would be eliminated. However, the current regional bureau system, including the Africa Bureau, has been maintained, with only the Assistant Secretary for Counterterrorism being transferred to the jurisdiction of the Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security.
According to the Washington Post and other outlets, the reorganization plan will reduce the number of State Department offices from 734 to 602 and eliminate 700 positions.
The State Department plans to implement the reorganization by July 1. In a statement, Secretary Rubio said, "The State Department in its current form is too large and bureaucratic to effectively carry out essential diplomatic missions in an era of intense great power competition." He criticized, "Unrestrained bureaucratic expansion has created a system that prioritizes extreme political ideology over the advancement of America's core national interests."
He added, "We will consolidate region-specific functions and eliminate redundant offices. Programs that do not serve America's core national interests will be discontinued. Under President Trump's leadership, we put Americans first. I am confident this will contribute to making America a great nation once again."
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