Vice President Kamala Harris swore fellow Indian American Geeta Rao Gupta in as Ambassador-at-large for Global Women’s Issues. She is the first woman of color to be appointed to this position.

Gupta’s past positions include being the President of the International Center for Research on Women, senior fellow at the Bill & Melinda Gates and United Nations Foundations, and deputy executive director of UNICEF. Her career has focused on women’s issues, gender, and HIV/AIDS.

On May 10, the Senate confirmed her appointment with a 51 to 47 vote. Peter Yeo, Senior Vice President at the UN Foundation, one of Gupta’s prior employers, said they made a “smart and strategic decision” by confirming her.

The Ambassador-at-large for Global Women’s Issues is not an ambassador to a specific country, but instead has a global portfolio in her field and heads the State Department’s Office of Global Women’s Issues. She will start immediately.

The State Department announced Gupta will be traveling to Nairobi, Kenya and Kigali, Rwanda from July 11th until the 20th. She will discuss “women, peace and security efforts” and will visit a US-funded UN program to eliminate female genital mutilation.

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