Heather K. Lanigan

Heather Lanigan is the Regional Director for Sub-Saharan Africa at the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), where she is responsible for developing the agency’s strategies, assistance activities, and innovative partnerships throughout the region. In addition to her regional responsibilities, she also leads USTDA’s Global Telecommunications Sector Team.

In her tenure at USTDA, Ms. Lanigan previously served as the Country Manager for the Middle East, North Africa, Europe and Eurasia, and for South Asia, and was responsible for implementing project preparation activities that catalyzed energy, transportation and telecommunications infrastructure projects in over 20 countries.

Ms. Lanigan also served as the Economic Transition Coordinator for the U.S. Department of State’s policy and programming assistance in Egypt, Libya, Syria and Tunisia.Ms. Lanigan holds a Master of Arts degree in Global Finance Trade and Economic Integration from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and Spanish from St. Lawrence University.

Sarah Whitten

Sarah Whitten is the Regional Finance and Implementation Manager at the U.S. Trade & Development Agency (USTDA), the United States government’s project preparation agency. In her role, Ms. Whitten supports the fundraising process for infrastructure project developers across sub-Saharan Africa.

Prior to joining the U.S. government, she was an Executive Director and Global Account Manager with Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) South Africa’s regional office, managing a c. $1 billion portfolio of multinational corporates, providing and structuring various financing and risk management solutions.

In addition to these roles, Ms. Whitten serves on the Global D&I Committee at USTDA and on the steering committee of 100 Women in Finance in South Africa. She previously served as chairwoman for SCB South Africa’s Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) Council, as well as on the steering committee of the 30% Club South Africa.

Prior to her roles in South Africa, Ms. Whitten was with SCB New York’s Debt Capital Markets team, covering origination for North American corporates focused on global bond issuances, and before that she with Merrill Lynch Chicago in Private Banking supporting investment decisions and the management of the portfolios of high-net-worth individuals. Ms. Whitten holds a BSc from Northwestern University in Illinois.

Michael Mugo

Michael Mugo is the Business Development Specialist for the East African region at the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), based in Nairobi, Kenya. In this role Michael provides program support and contributes to strategic planning and business development in the East Africa Region. He is a member of the Agency’s healthcare infrastructure and clean energy sector teams.

Prior to joining USTDA, Michael worked for the Delegation of German Industry and Commerce for Eastern Africa, fostering positive bilateral business relations between German and Eastern Africa companies. His prior professional experience includes serving as a Senior Account Manager in the advertising and corporate communications. He holds an MBA in Marketing from the United States International University-Africa and a Finance degree from the Strathmore Business School.

Elizabeth Rosa

Elizabeth Rosa is the Events Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa at the U.S. Trade and Development Agency.Prior to joining USTDA, Elizabeth served as the Special Events Coordinator at the U.S. Capitol. While there, she was instrumental in executing over 1000 Congressional events, including the 2021 Presidential Inauguration, the 117th Congress New Member Orientation, and several House and Senate Committee Hearings.

Before her work at the Capitol, Elizabeth was a senior project manager with a small business federal contractor, where she managed events, trainings and conferences for multiple agencies, including the Executive Office of the President. The events ranged in size from 25 to 5000 attendees and were held in different locations across the nation.

Elizabeth speaks Spanish and holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biological Sciences from Florida State University. She also holds certificates in Events Management from George Washington University and in Data Analytics from Harvard Business School.

Laura Spector

Laura Spector is the Power Africa Country Manager for West Africa at the U.S. Trade and Development Agency. In this capacity, she is responsible for business development, project preparation and evaluation, and supervision of USTDA energy sector activities in West Africa. She is also a member of the agency’s Energy Sector Team and Climate Change Working Group.

Before joining USTDA, Ms. Spector worked as a contractor providing research and analytical support to the agency’s Sub-Saharan Africa team. Her previous professional experience includes work in U.S. government and trade association settings.

Ms. Spector holds a Master of Public Policy degree and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government and Politics from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Connect with USTDA

Subscribe to USTDA News and Information