Recently, President Joe Biden appointed one of Minnesota’s distinguished diaspora leaders, Patrick Mendis, to the prestigious National Security Education Board (NSEB), a group of eight cabinet secretaries and six presidential appointees chaired by the U.S. secretary of defense.
These appointees are American citizens with global prominence in diplomacy and military service. Mendis is a former American diplomat and a military professor in the NATO and the Indo-Pacific Commands of the Pentagon. Now living in Washington, D.C., he served in the U.S. departments of agriculture, energy, defense and state during the Clinton, Bush and Obama administrations and as a commissioner to the U.S. National Commission for UNESCO.
Patrick came to the United States from Sri Lanka as a high school exchange student in Perham, Minnesota. Later “adopted” by Minnesotans when the civil war broke out in Sri Lanka, he went on to graduate from the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs. He went on to a life of public service that began with a staff position in Minnesota’s House of Representatives.
Another example is Afro Deli founder Abdirahman Kahin, the National Small Business Person of the Year for the United States. Kahin immigrated to Minnesota from Djibouti in the early 2000s and initially ran a media production business, making films and recording weddings and other events for East Africans living in Minnesota.
With a growing interest in the food industry, he left his production business behind to open a restaurant. When his first Afro Deli & Grill opened in Minneapolis’ Cedar-Riverside neighborhood, he never imagined being celebrated at the national level. That day came last year at the White House when President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris awarded him with the national title. Minnesota’s diaspora community is central to the success of our economy, and this special award is just one example of our leadership in the economic sector that comes from our inclusive approach to the creation and nurturing of new diaspora-inspired businesses.
Basil Ajuo arrived in the United States from the Central African country of Cameroon 10 years ago, a bit accidentally. On a flight from California to Texas that included a stopover at Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, he found himself stranded in Minnesota — and the rest is history. Among his many community leadership roles, he served on the board of MnSCU, now known as Minnesota State, to which he was appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton. In 2016, he pulled together a coalition for all African diaspora communities in Minnesota — called Minnesota Africans United, or MAU. With representation from nearly all African countries, MAU’s work centers on closing opportunity gaps in education, healthcare, the economy and employment. Their work connecting African diaspora-led companies in Minnesota with business and investment opportunities throughout the African continent has been incredibly effective before, during and, now, after the COVID crisis.
Nisha Botchwey, dean at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, is a relatively new arrival in Minnesota, but not to the United States. Dean Botchwey migrated to the United States from Jamaica with her family and has devoted her life to public service in many roles and careers. Botchwey holds a master’s degree and Ph.D. in urban planning from the University of Pennsylvania. She also has a master’s degree in public health from the University of Virginia, and a bachelor’s degree in environmental science and public policy from Harvard University. She serves as the Humphrey School’s chief executive and academic officer.
These four remarkable leaders have chosen the North Star state to call home, and all work tirelessly to improve the lives of people nearby and far away. Their contributions touch every aspect of our lives — from culture and commerce to academia, medicine and sports.
Abdirahman Kahin has shown what a diaspora-owned small business can contribute to our entire nation and Basil Ajuo has worked tirelessly to advance two-way trade and investment that benefits communities in Minnesota and on the African continent. Botchway is one of the leading global experts in health policy and the environment, with a special focus on youth engagement and health equity.
Currently, Mendis serves as a distinguished visiting professor at both the Jagiellonian University in Krakow and the University of Warsaw in Poland. He also served as a distinguished visiting professor at the Yenching Academy of Peking University in China and at National Chengchi University in Taiwan. He taught at more than 25 Chinese universities and academies, for which he received the International Confucius Award.
Patrick Mendis is a shining example of the incredible accomplishments of and many important contributions made by those who’ve chosen Minnesota as one of their homes.
Mark Ritchie served as Minnesota’s secretary of state from 2007-2015 and is a former president of Global Minnesota.
