Nancy Jo Powell (born 1947, Cedar Falls,

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

) was the

United States Ambassador to India The United States ambassador to India is the chief diplomatic representative of United States in India. The U.S. ambassador's office is situated at the Embassy of the United States, New Delhi, U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. On March 15, 2023, Eri ...

from April 2012 to May 2014. Powell was Director General of the United States Foreign Service, a position she assumed after serving as the U.S. Ambassador to Nepal. Powell is a career member of the

Senior Foreign Service The Senior Foreign Service (SFS) comprises the top four ranks of the United States Foreign Service. These ranks were created by the Foreign Service Act of 1980 and Executive Order 12293 in order to provide the Foreign Service with senior grades ...

. Powell joined the

United States Foreign Service The United States Foreign Service is the primary personnel system used by the diplomatic service of the United States federal government, under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of over 13,000 professionals carr ...

in 1977, and has held assignments in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and

South Asia South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...

. Media reports conjectured that Powell's resignation was inevitable after the officials of the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

stopped accepting to meet her, following the Devyani Khobragade incident.

Previous positions

*United States Ambassador to India, 2012-2014 * Director General of the United States Foreign Service, 2009-2012 *Ambassador to

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

, July 16, 20072009 *National Intelligence Officer for South Asia, National Intelligence Council, 2006–2007 *Senior Coordinator for Avian Influenza and Infectious Diseases, 2006 (?) *Acting Assistant Secretary of State for the

Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) is an agency that reports to the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights within the United States Department of State. Under the umbrella of ...

, March 14November 25, 2005Older biography
from

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy of the United State ...

, released April 4, 2005 *Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary and the Acting

Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs The assistant secretary of state for legislative affairs is the head of the Bureau of Legislative Affairs within the United States Department of State. List of assistant secretaries of state for legislative affairs References External links ...

, November 2004March 2005 *Ambassador to Pakistan, August 9, 2002October 2004 *Ambassador to Ghana, August 14, 2001May 2002 *Acting Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, January 2001June 2001 *Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, July 1999January 2001 *Ambassador to

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

, 1997–1999 *Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Dhaka,

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

, 1995–1997 *Political Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi,

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, 1993–1995 *Consul General in Calcutta, India, 1992–1993 *Deputy Chief of Mission in Lome,

Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...

, 1990–1992 Other overseas assignments have included Islamabad, Pakistan; Kathmandu, Nepal; and Ottawa, Canada; and previous Washington assignments were those of Nepal Desk Officer and Refugee Assistance Officer.Older biography
from

, released December 5, 2001

References

External links

Foreign Service Journal article on her Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy Award.U.S. Embassy in Kathmandu, Nepal
an online interactive forum with U.S. Ambassador to Nepal Nancy Powell, April 28, 2008 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Nancy Jo 1947 births Living people 20th-century American diplomats 21st-century American diplomats 20th-century American women 21st-century American women Ambassadors of the United States to Ghana Ambassadors of the United States to India Ambassadors of the United States to Nepal Ambassadors of the United States to Pakistan Ambassadors of the United States to Uganda American women ambassadors Directors general of the United States Foreign Service People from Cedar Falls, Iowa United States career ambassadors