Afghanistan, the Middle East, and Africa
Hamse Warfa: From Somalia to American Diplomacy
Fled Somalia's civil war, grew up in Kenyan refugee camps, and became a senior adviser at the Department of State.
- Fled
- Somalia
- Status
- Refugee
- Arrived in the U.S.
- 1994
- Service
- Senior Advisor, U.S. Department of State (from 2022)
- Region
- Afghanistan, the Middle East, and Africa
Hamse Warfa's family fled Somalia after civil war broke out in 1991 and lived in several refugee camps in Kenya. He came to the United States as a teenager in 1994.
He studied at San Diego State and Springfield College and served as Deputy Commissioner of Minnesota's Department of Employment and Economic Development. In January 2022 he joined the Department of State as a Senior Advisor working on democracy and human rights. The Department has described him as having come to the United States as a refugee from Somalia.
Read the history behind this story on the Somalia page, or browse all the diplomats.