Dr. Randy Kolstad began as the USAID Representative in Namibia in June 2018.  From 2014 to 2018, he served at USAID’s Regional Development Mission for Asia as an inaugural member of USAID’s Senior Technical Group, a cadre of U.S. Foreign Service Officers charged with advancing USAID’s technical leadership in the development arena.  From 2011 to 2014, Dr. Kolstad was the USAID/Egypt Health Office Director, leading the team in the immediate aftermath of the Arab Spring.  From 2007 to 2011, he was the Director of the USAID/Zambia health office, leading a diverse team managing HIV, malaria, family planning, TB and maternal child health interventions throughout the country.  He led the USAID/Iraq National Capacity Building Office from 2006 to 2007, and led the reproductive health division of the USAID/India health team from 2002 to 2006.  He began working with USAID as a Child Survival Fellow at USAID/Cambodia from 1998 to 2000 before becoming a USAID Foreign Service Officer in 2001.  Prior to joining USAID, he managed epidemiologic studies in association with the U.S. National Cancer Institute and was a Peace Corps Volunteer in southeastern Morocco. 

He has Ph.D. in international health from the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health and B.A. in biochemistry from the University of California, Berkeley.