text:
Resources to support COVID-19 responses in LMICs
By Advocacy & Policy
Recognizing that guidance has been shared by various agencies but may not be easily accessible to policymakers, practitioners, and other health stakeholders, PATH has compiled this resource page of guidance and model language from across many sources to inform low- and middle- income country responses to COVID-19.
Projections on disruptions to essential health services and non-COVID deaths: studies that estimate the effect of COVID-19 on essential health services and indirect deaths attributable to service disruptions.
Key technical and policy guidance for LMICs: key technical and policy guidance specific to LMIC settings, compiled from WHO, Africa CDC, and the UN.
To maintain essential health services: guidance and best practices for countries, facilities, and health care workers to protect and maintain the provision of essential health services during the pandemic.
To maintain population nutrition and food systems: documents that guide countries' ability to ensure food systems provide adequate nutrition to their populations during the complexities of the global COVID-19 crisis.
To support evidence-informed policymaking: existing evidence related to COVID-19 disease and interventions, which can be used to gather and weigh evidence to inform policies.
To support data-driven decision-making: guidance for program managers and M&E advisors on using data to inform decision-making, including identifying and tracking performance indicators.
To see what other countries are doing: a list of COVID-19 policy trackers that summarize the policies of a variety of international, government, and academic institutions relating to health, education, emergency declarations, travel or gathering restrictions, and fiscal/monetary measures.
This page last updated: May 4, 2020
Projections on disruptions to essential health services and non-COVID deaths
These studies estimate the effect of COVID-19 on essential health services and indirect deaths attributable to service disruptions.
Risks and benefits of sustaining routine childhood immunization programs in Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic - This paper from the Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases estimates that for every 1 excess death attributable to a COVID-19 infection acquired during a child vaccination visit, sustained routine immunization programs would prevent 128 future deaths in children under five years old.
Early Estimates of the Indirect Effects of the Coronavirus Pandemic on Maternal and Child Mortality in Low- and Middle-Income Countries - This study estimates the additional maternal and under-five child deaths resulting from weakened health systems and reduced utilization of routine services during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study finds that three scenarios in which coverage of basic lifesaving interventions is reduced over six months could increase under-five child deaths by 9.8% to 44.7%, and maternal deaths by 8.3% to 38.6%.
Coronavirus: 30 million children's lives at risk from secondary effects of deadly disease - World Vision reports that as many as 30 million children are in danger of negative secondary health impacts due to the COVID-19 pandemic, including lack of immunization, risk of malaria and other diseases, and malnutrition.
Estimates of the Potential Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Sexual and Reproductive Health in Low- and Middle-Income Countries - This study from the Guttmacher Institute estimates that a 10% proportional decline in use of short- and long-acting reversible contraceptive methods in LMICs would result in an additional 49 million women with an unmet need for modern contraceptives and an additional 15 million unintended pregnancies over the course of one year.
The potential impact of health service disruptions on the burden of malaria - A new modelling analysis by WHO and partners considers nine scenarios for potential disruptions in access to core malaria control tools during the pandemic in 41 countries, and resulting increases in cases and deaths. Under the worst-case scenario, in which all insecticide-treated net campaigns are suspended and there is a 75% reduction in access to effective antimalarial medicines, the estimated tally of malaria deaths in sub-Saharan Africa in 2020 would reach 769,000—twice the number of deaths reported in the region in 2018.
Risk of hunger pandemic as COVID-19 set to almost double acute hunger by end of 2020 - New figures from the World Food Programme indicate that the spread of COVID-19 will put an additional 130 million people in danger of acute hunger by the end of 2020, mainly in Africa and the Middle East.
Key technical and policy guidance for LMICs
This set of resources features key technical and policy guidance specific to LMIC settings, compiled from WHO, Africa CDC, and the UN.
World Health Organization Country & Technical Guidance - This site includes all WHO technical guidance for COVID-19 as it is released, ranging from guidance on Operational Planning, Risk Communication, and lists of essential COVID-19 medicines and supplies. It is arranged by topic, but to make it easier to navigate and use we have created an annotated summary of each document here.
Africa CDC COVID-19 Resources - This CDC page includes COVID-19 resources including recommendations for social distancing, travel guidelines, hygiene, and stepwise response. A high percentage of the African population could be infected with COVID-19 in the next year, resulting in large number of deaths, particularly in people with advanced age and/or underlying illnesses. Additional guidance was provided by the Africa Joint Continental Strategy for COVID-19 Outbreak.
Lifebox COVID-19 Resources - Lifebox has rapidly re-focused tools and training materials to help clinicians in low-resource settings respond to COVID-19. Available resources include a list of technical guidance documents and resources, a decision/triage tool (available in English, Spanish, French, Swahili, Amharic, and Hindi), training videos for using pulse oximeters to triage suspected COVID-19 patients, a checklist for surgical teams in the context of COVID-19, and interviews with front-line surgical and anesthesia partners.
COVID-19 Guidance Note Protecting Residents of Informal Settlements - To prevent the spread of COVID-19, government leaders are asking people to 'shelter-in-place'; thus, housing has become a major defense in fighting COVID-19. Those residing in over-crowded informal settlements or encampments are at a greater risk of contracting this life-threatening virus—partially because they lack access to on-site water or sanitation, and face constant fear of eviction. This document provides recommendations for state policies to protect those in precarious housing situations during COVID-19.
Guidance for the prevention of COVID-19 infections among high-risk individuals in camps and camp-like settings - The Health in Humanitarian Crises Center has published a set of general principles and specific recommendations to implement a "targeted shielding" approach to protect communities where mass 'stay-at-home' orders are not appropriate. The proposed approach shields high-risk individuals from the rest of the community and is potentially transferable to other densely populated low-resource settings.
Clinical care of severe acute respiratory infections - This toolkit is intended for clinicians working in acute care hospitals in low- and middle-income countries, managing adult and pediatric patients with acute respiratory infection, including severe pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, sepsis, and septic shock.
Diagnosing malaria and other febrile illnesses during the COVID-19 pandemic - This commentary in the Lancet provides recommendations for health care in community and primary health care settings for differentiating febrile diseases in the short and long term.
Principles of Health Systems Resilience in the Context of COVID-19 Response - This document from UKaid presents seven key principles and actions that countries can apply to strengthen their health system response to COVID-19.
Addressing Human Rights as Key to the COVID-19 Response - This document provides key considerations for addressing stigma and discrimination, prevention of violence against women, support for vulnerable populations, quarantine and restrictive measures, and shortages of supplies and equipment. It also highlights human rights obligations with regards to global cooperation to address COVID-19.
African Union and Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention Launch Partnership to Accelerate COVID-19 Testing: Trace, Test, and Track - The African Union Commission and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) have launched a new initiative, the Partnership to Accelerate COVID-19 Testing (PACT): Trace, Test & Track (CDC-T3). The partnership will facilitate implementation of the Africa Joint Continental Strategy for COVID-19, aiming to strengthen capacity to test for COVID-19 across Africa, with emphasis on countries that have only minimal capacity.
Think Global Health - South Africa's War on COVID-19 - A detailed account of key dates, interventions, and impacts of responses in South Africa. Sharing these accounts is helping to create a community of practice among African countries.
Response strategies for COVID-19 epidemics in African settings: a mathematical modelling study - Study from the Centre for Mathematical Modelling of Infectious Diseases (CMMID) that models the evolution of COVID-19 in Mauritius, Niger, and Nigeria to evaluate strategies to reduce SARS-CoV-2 burden in African countries. These models seek to support decisions that balance minimizing mortality, protecting health services, and safeguarding livelihoods.
The Conversation - Five criteria low income countries must have in place for lockdowns to work - This article proposes an index of lockdown readiness to assess the share of households in a country that could feasibly shelter in place for a long period of time, including access to safe drinking water in the home, adequate sanitation in the home, a source of reliable energy, access to information or communications technology, and having a permanent source of income or savings.
To maintain essential health services
The following documents provide guidance and best practices for countries, facilities, and health care workers to protect and maintain the provision of essential health services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Topics covered in this section include overarching planning, response, and financing recommendations to prevent a broader health system collapse due to COVID-19, as well as strategies to tailor the provision of specific services like routine immunization and malaria interventions to the COVID-19 context.
World Health Organization COVID-19: Operational guidance for maintaining essential health services during an outbreak - This document expands WHO's content of the Operational planning guidelines to support country preparedness and response, and provides guidance on a set of targeted immediate actions that countries should consider at the national, regional, and local level to reorganize and maintain access to high-quality essential health services for all. This guidance will help countries make difficult decisions to balance the demands of responding directly to COVID-19, while simultaneously engaging in strategic planning and coordinated action to maintain essential health service delivery, mitigating the risk of system collapse.
Infection prevention and control during health care when novel coronavirus (nCoV) infection is suspected - This is the first edition of guidance on infection prevention and control (IPC) strategies for use when infection with a novel coronavirus is suspected. Its implementation will support the protection and maintenance of other health services by keeping health workers and patients safe in facility settings.
World Health Organization guiding principles for immunization activities during the COVID-19 pandemic - The global COVID-19 pandemic poses a risk of disruption to routine immunization activities, due to an overburdened health system and decreased demand for vaccination because of physical distancing requirements or community reluctance. Disruption of immunization services, even for brief periods, will result in increased numbers of susceptible individuals and will raise the likelihood of outbreak-prone vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs) such as measles. The high potential for VPD outbreaks makes it imperative that countries maintain continuity of immunization services wherever possible under safe conditions. Prior disease outbreaks and humanitarian emergencies have underscored the importance of maintaining essential health services such as immunization and effectively engaging communities in planning and service delivery. The complexity and global reach of the COVID-19 response with respect to mandatory physical distancing and economic impact is unprecedented for public health.
FAQ: Immunization in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic - These FAQs accompany WHO's guiding principles for immunization activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. While it is vital that countries commit to sustaining immunization systems, they should use approaches that respect the principle of "do-no-harm" and limit the risk of transmission of COVID-19 during immunization activities.
Gavi COVID-19 page - A series of blogs by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, highlighting different aspects of the COVID-19 response, including disruption to routine vaccination services.
World Health Organization recommendations on health financing during COVID-19 - WHO health financing experts from headquarters and regional offices published joint guidance and recommendations which can safeguard or improve financial access to essential services. The two major recommendations, with detail on implementation, include: increasing health budgets and investing in common goods such as public health and surveillance functions; and removing financial barriers to care, including user-fees, and adding cash transfers to enable care-seeking where other financial barriers continue to exist (e.g. transport costs).
PMNCH compendium of COVID-19 related partner resources on women's, children's, and adolescents' health - Disruptions in reproductive health care, including access to contraception, is an inevitable consequence of mandatory physical distancing policies as part of a pandemic response. This resource provides the latest guidance and resources around COVID-19 and its effects on women's, children's, and adolescents' health, from credible resources. This compendium will be developed as a living repository of the most up-to-date guidance from UN agencies, especially WHO, as well as PMNCH's health care professional association members.
Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic UNFPA Global Response Plan - This document outlines UNFPA's strategic priorities to respond to COVID-19 including continuity of sexual and reproductive health services and interventions, addressing gender-based violence, and ensuring the supply of modern contraceptives and reproductive health commodities. Key accelerator interventions and results indicators for the three priority areas are also included.
FP2020 COVID-19 and Family Planning - FP2020 has compiled resources related to the continuation of family planning programs and services during the COVID-19 pandemic on their website, including agency reports and statements, strategic guidelines and checklists, blogs and articles, and videos and webinars. They have also launched a social media campaign, "How are you working to protect #FPinCOVIDreponse?"
Policy brief: the impact of COVID-19 on children - The United Nations Sustainable Development Group reports on impacts of COVID-19 for children including threats to child/infant survival and health, education, poverty, and safety. The brief also provides recommendations for how to mitigate these impacts.
The Global Fund to Fight HIV, TB, and Malaria: COVID-19 technical guidance - This page links to frequently updated technical guidance from the Global Fund largely relating to maintenance of services for HIV, TB, and malaria programs (see "Information notes") as well as key guidance from other partners. Each disease area has dozens of recommendations on how to maintain service continuity, including innovative approaches like telemedicine and community delivery of medicines and commodities.
The United States President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief: FAQs on PEPFAR's HIV Response in the Context of COVID-19 - Two of PEPFAR's priorities during COVID-19 are ensuring continuity of care for people living with HIV and reducing exposure of staff and HIV clients to COVID-19. PEPFAR is working to provide at least three months, and hopefully six months, of ART for clients, and is using community-based delivery options as much as possible.
UNAIDS calls for increase in health spending and social protection as an essential part of the economic response to COVID-19 - UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima's statement on the economic response to COVID-19 during an online event held on 16 April 2020.
COVID-19 Response Mechanism Update for Implementing Countries - The COVID-19 Response Mechanism, announced by the Global Fund Board on April 9, 2020, authorizes funding of US$500 million to support countries to respond to COVID-19 and mitigate its impact on HIV, TB, and malaria programs. This fund is an addition to previously announced Global Fund grant flexibilities up to US$500 million.
GFF leaders warn of emerging secondary global health crisis from disruptions in primary health care due to COVID-19 - As the COVID-19 pandemic escalates in low- and lower-middle income countries, Global Financing Facility leaders warn of the growing risk of widespread disruptions in access to reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health and nutrition services, and urge immediate steps to prevent a secondary global health crisis. A rapid survey of the 36 countries currently supported by the GFF found that nearly half are already reporting life-threatening service disruptions.
Tailoring malaria interventions in the COVID-19 response - On April 10, WHO's Global Malaria Program released this guidance for health ministries and national malaria control programs during COVID-19, affirming the need to maintain malaria programs while also contributing to COVID-19 response efforts. Countries should continue to provide core preventive and case management interventions, which may require innovations that help maintain physical distancing of implementers and beneficiaries.
COVID-RHR-HUB: Family Planning and Reproductive Health Community-Contributed COVID-19 Resources - COVID-19 is expected to cause disruptions in access to family planning services. The Gates Institute has created a live database with a wide range of resources including calls to action, op-eds, health and safety advice, best practices, community experience and insight, action initiatives, government initiatives, research and academic publications, news/media, multilateral initiatives, publications, and online events and webinars. This compilation of resources was developed to inform decision-making crucial to effective outbreak response by the public, governments/policymakers, donors and philanthropists, health care providers, researchers, advocates, etc.
Community Health Impact Coalition: Priorities for the Global COVID-19 Response - In addition to recommending general actions governments can take to protect the poorest and maintain existing health services, the Community Health Impact Coalition recommends steps to protect and leverage community health workers (CHWs) including: ensuring they are included in PPE forecasting; endorsing a protocol for CHWs as part of the COVID-19 response; and mobilizing and training existing community health teams.
To maintain population nutrition and food systems
These documents guide countries' ability to ensure food systems provide adequate nutrition to populations during the global COVID-19 crisis. These guidance documents are key to ensuring ongoing health for all, especially as economic downturns and supply chain issues threaten nutrition systems.
UNSCN Resource list on Food Systems and Nutrition responses - The United Nations System Standing Committee on Nutrition has compiled a comprehensive list of guidance, technical briefs, articles, blog posts, tools, and agency responses to disruptions in the global food supply and effects on nutrition caused by COVID-19.
Q&A: COVID-19 pandemic – impact on food and agriculture - Answers from FAO on the impacts of COVID-19 on global food security, demand, and prices.
UNICEF Nutrition COVID-19 newsletter - A knowledge dissemination tool to share programmatic guidance, position papers, technical notes, emerging research, and other evidence being developed by UNICEF and partners around understanding and mitigating the pandemic's impact on maternal and child nutrition.
Global Nutrition Cluster COVID-19 resources - This page on the Global Nutrition Cluster website compiles resources for integrating COVID-19 preparedness and response into humanitarian nutrition efforts--including guidance documents, online training materials, and webinars to assist Nutrition in Emergencies practitioners and coordination teams.
2020 Global Report on Food Crises - A joint consensus-based assessment of acute food insecurity situations around the world by 16 partner organizations. The report, which was prepared before the COVID-19 pandemic became a global crisis, includes an alert on the impact of COVID-19 in food-crisis countries.
To support evidence-informed policymaking
The following resources collate existing evidence related to COVID-19 and interventions. This section includes systematic reviews, modeling analyses, and other studies, as well as examples and experiences of evidence use to inform policymaking on the African continent. These resources can be used to gather and weigh evidence to inform policymaking.
African Evidence Network: EIDM during COVID-19 - This resource is an opportunity to curate new evidence, examples of evidence use, and experiences of evidence use on the African continent during COVID-19. Content includes: 1) rapid reviews for best practices relevant to certain sectors; 2) content from multisectoral task forces to address key concerns; 3) responding to demand-led syntheses of best available information to advise decision-making; 4) providing creative ways to address critical challenges in EIDM at this time; 5) guidelines that have considered as much as possible the best available evidence; 6) news media highlights on EIDM during COVID-19 in various African countries; and 7) blogs by AEN members on key "EIDM during COVID" topics.
Norwegian Institute for Public Health (NIPH): Live map of COVID-19 evidence - Evidence gap maps are tools to provide an overview of research by specific topics and sub-groups. NIPH has created this evidence map which collates systematic reviews, modeling analyses, and other studies related to the disease and interventions. LMIC studies will be included as they become available. We recommend looking at the Africa Evidence Network for a faster selection of LMIC-specific evidence.
Cochrane Library COVID-19 Special Collection - Cochrane–the global leader in systematic review and other evidence products–has developed a COVID-19 library that includes relevant existing systematic reviews to answer policymaker and health manager questions. This page also links to rapid reviews and will continue to add new content as it is available. We recommend looking at the Africa Evidence Network for a faster selection of LMIC-specific evidence.
N95DECON - A scientific consortium for data-driven study of N95 filtering facepiece respirator decontamination, N95DECON's website includes recent research and publications, fact sheets, and technical reports on methods of decontaminating N95 masks prior to reuse.
To support data-driven decision making
These resources provide guidance on best practices for using data to inform decision making around COVID-19. The following documents can help program managers and M&E advisors identify key indicators in the monitoring and tracking of disruptions in essential service provision due to COVID-19. These resources help show how data can be used to inform realistic and effective policy responses.
World Health Organization's Analysis and Use of Health Facility Data - This toolkit is a set of resources to optimize the analysis and use of data collected through routine health facility information systems, also known as health management information systems (HMIS). The comprehensive toolkit includes a series of integrated modules which can be used individually or together, according to country needs. Routine tracking of data can help identify spill-over or negative consequences of COVID-19 on other health care service needs.
Demographic Health Survey: COVID-19 Mitigation - The current World Health Organization's guidelines call for a public focus on handwashing, social distancing, communication with medical providers, and staying informed to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19. However, such guidance may be more aspirational than actionable for millions at risk of exposure to the virus in lower- and middle- income countries as revealed by recent demographic and health surveys. This article provides guidance on using these surveys to inform realistic approaches for COVID-19 policy practices. It also provides recommendations for tracking non-COVID related measures to capture the potential negative consequences of focused efforts of COVID-19 response on other health care service needs.
PATH's guidance for monitoring essential health services during COVID-19 using data from routine health information systems - The World Health Organization recommends monitoring access, availability, and coverage of essential health services during COVID-19 in "COVID-19: Operational guidance for maintaining essential health services during an outbreak." Building on WHO's toolkits for analysis and use of health facility data, we identify core indicators to monitor disruptions in essential health services, guidance on how to visualize and interpret time trends, and link to external guidance on what to do and how to act. This resource is meant for program managers, mid-level (e.g. district) managers, M&E advisors, and partners who support the monitoring of health programs.
F2P - On Covid-19 Social Science can save lives: where do we start? - Blog posts by Heather Marquette on Using Graphics to Cut Through COVID's Complexity and COVID-19's Social and Political Impacts.
To see what other countries are doing
To get a sense of country responses across the world, this list of COVID-19 policy trackers summarizes the actions of a variety of international, government, and academic institutions. These resources monitor, compile, and update country COVID-19 policies relating to health, education, emergency declarations, travel or gathering restrictions, and fiscal/monetary measures.
Note: As of last update, we have not identified a database of LMIC policy responses.
Tackling Coronavirus (COVID-19): Key policy responses from OECD - This database is a compilation of data, analysis, and recommendations on emerging health, economic, and societal crises to facilitate coordination around this collective challenge. This new series brings together policy responses spanning a large range of topics, from health to education and taxes, providing guidance on the short-term measures needed in affected sectors with a specific focus on the vulnerable sectors of society. Beyond the immediate response effort, the content aims to provide analysis on the longer-term consequences and impacts, paving the way to recovery with coordinated policy responses across countries.
IMF COVID-19 Policy Tracker - This database includes the key economic responses and policies for 193 economies. These include different measures in taxation and spending, loans and guarantees, monetary instruments, and foreign exchange operations. IMF notes that the information included is not meant for comparison across members, as responses vary depending on the nature of the shock and country-specific circumstances.
Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker - The Oxford Government Response Tracker (OxCGRT) collects information on several common policy approaches governments have taken, scores the stringency of such measures, and aggregates these scores into a common Stringency Index. OxCGRT collects publicly available information on 11 indicators of government response (S1-S11). The first seven indicators (S1-S7) record policies such as school closures, travel bans, etc. on an ordinal scale; the remainder (S8-S11) are financial indicators such as fiscal or monetary measures.
Global Dashboard on COVID-19 Government Policies - The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is pleased to provide the Global Dashboard on COVID-19 Policies to stay informed of the ever-changing regulatory landscape in response to this pandemic. Policy topics address government aid, stimulus, emergency declarations, guidance on infrastructure, trade issues, travel restrictions, and privacy guidance.
COVID-19 Civic Freedom Tracker - The International Center for Not-For-Profit Law monitors government responses to the COVID-19 pandemic that affect civil freedoms and human rights, focusing on emergency laws. This tracker compiles policies from 115 countries, including 32 countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
COVID-19 distancing policies that have been implemented in African countries - A GitHub repository including a file that tracks the social distancing policies that have been implemented in all 54 African countries.
BMJ Blog: Domestic health financing for COVID-19 response in Africa - This article explores the extent to which budgetary measures have been embraced in 23 WHO Africa Region member states (for which data are available), focusing on domestic funding.
Global Monitoring of School Meals During COVID-19 School Closures - This map from WFP tracks countries with school closures where school-age children will be affected by the disruption to WFP and other school feeding programs.
Something to add?
If you know of any COVID-19 guidance geared toward the LMIC context that you think should be included in this library of resources, email us the link and any related information:
advocacyandpolicy@path.org


text:
Produce Business
Marketing • Merchandising • Management • Procurement
Home Departments Dried Fruits & Nuts
Holiday Baking Can Sell More Dried Fruit and Nuts
Posted By: Sophia McDonald November 1, 2016
Between Thanksgiving and New Year's, shift the retail marketing focus to maximize profits.
As consumers grow more health-conscious, they're inclined to reach for nuts and dried fruit instead of candy and chips for snacking.
"Up to 70 percent of all dried fruits now are used for snacking," says Joe Tamble, vice president of retail sales execution for Kingsburg, CA-based Sun-Maid, a cooperative owned by family farmers. This shift creates a real opportunity for produce departments that merchandise these products.
With Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah and other celebrations coming up fast, produce executives should not forget about a prominent group looking for dried fruit and nuts this time of year — holiday bakers.
"As we prepare for the holidays, many of us are thinking about friends and family get-togethers, gifts for teachers, and delicious treats to have on the counter for our family to enjoy," says Jamie McGarity, brand marketing assistant for Severn, NC-based Hampton Farms. That means shoppers are more likely to purchase nuts and dried fruit for family recipes or dishes they find online. Here are some new, tried-and-true tips for ensuring your department can meet the needs of cooks and candy makers.
Most Popular
Joseph Bunting, director of produce for Lubbock, TX-based United Supermarkets, a chain with stores throughout Texas and New Mexico, says almonds, walnuts and Texas pecans are particularly popular around the holidays.
Debbie Miner, produce manager for Highland Park Market, a Manchester, CT-based chain with five stores, says holiday shoppers come to the produce department looking for packages of mixed nuts, almonds, walnuts and hazelnuts. She only adds these items to her inventory in the late fall and early winter.
Peanut sales are generally on the rise, according to Lauren Highfill Williams, marketing and communications manager for the National Peanut Board, a research, marketing and promotion organization based in Atlanta.
"United States Department of Agriculture figures show per capita peanut consumption topped 7 pounds in 2014," she says. "Consumers are recognizing the unique flavor and health benefits that peanuts and other nuts provide. Peanuts are healthy, provide seven grams of protein per serving and have the heart check from the American Heart Association."
"We try to offer a big impact display with nuts and dried fruit tied into it. That creates a destination center. We do that as a convenience for our guests."
— Joseph Bunting, United Supermarkets
"Before, one of the main peanut products you would think of during the holidays was peanut brittle," says McGarity. "Now you see many products and recipes that give you ideas of what you can make using peanuts and peanut butter. Although many holiday baking recipes we see are similar to classic favorites, consumers are always looking for new things to try with the resources they have at their fingertips … we are confident many people are using peanuts in holiday baking."
In the dried fruit category, Bunting says dried cranberries do very well around the holidays, as do blueberries. Miner says cranberries and apricots are her best holiday sellers.
"Dates are very popular during the holidays for both baking and appetizers," says Stephanie Harralson, senior product manager for Sunsweet Growers Inc., a grower-owned cooperative that's based in Yuba City, CA. "Prunes have been showing strong growth." Sales are currently up 9 percent over last year according to data from data analytics firm IRI.
Raisins, golden raisins, currants and figs are also good holiday items. Consumers looking to try something different in their holiday baked goods can check out Sunsweet's Pacific Tropicals line. It includes Philippine mango and green mango, Philippine pineapple as well as Thai coconut chips.
Easy To Find
"We always merchandise nuts and dried fruit together," says Bunting. "We try to offer a big impact display with nuts and dried fruit tied into it. That creates a destination center. We do that as a convenience for our guests. They can find everything they're looking for right there. They don't have to search for it in the store."
Miner places dried fruit and nuts in bins at the front of the produce department; on a large wooden rack she keeps for seasonal items, or on displays near the store entrance. "If it's a seasonal thing you want to catch people's attention, so put them front and center," she says. "Location is the number one thing."
Harralson says dried fruit and nuts do best when placed at the entrance to produce, or in transition areas between produce and grocery. "Avoid placing dried fruit on bottom shelves where it's difficult to find or see," she says.
"Dried fruit is very impulse-driven," says Tamble with Sun-Maid. Because of that, he encourages retailers to use pallet or shipper displays. The latter, he says, "has a very small footprint and is designed to move products through quickly." Sunsweet also offers in-store displays for pitted and chopped dates.
"For walnuts, secondary displays beyond the baking aisle are a great reminder to use walnuts for more than holiday baking needs," says Jennifer Olmstead, marketing director, domestic public relations for the California Walnut Board and Commission, which is located in Folsom, CA. If displays remain into the New Year, when people are thinking about healthy snacking, it can promote sales even after presents have been unwrapped and champagne bottles uncorked.
Marketing Helps
There's no better way to promote dried fruit than to help consumers save money when they buy it. Sun-Maid is currently promoting a holiday campaign called "Bake It for Santa." One of the centerpieces of the campaign is an FSI coupon that's good for 55 cents off one 20-ounce canister or 12-ounce box of raisins, 15-ounce box of golden raisins or any size container of Zante currents. The company is also running ads, sharing social media posts about cooking with dried fruit, and doing product placement on food-related television shows and websites.
Recipes are key to promoting nuts and dried fruit, says United Supermarkets' Bunting. "People are always looking for something different." If stores can give them another usage idea, they're more likely to increase purchases.
Those cooking suggestions can be for more traditional recipes or new ideas. "Freshly ground peanut butter can be used in holiday peanut butter cookies, cakes and quick breads and more," says Highfill Williams with the National Peanut Board.
"Chopped peanuts provide a crunchy and salty balance as a topping for a classic peanut butter pie. We also saw an exciting new take on the traditional pecan pie that uses peanuts instead, and introduces a modern salted caramel flavor profile."
"Since most consumers are looking for quick recipes with minimal ingredients, posting a quick how-to video using products that are featured in the store can create interest prior to a customer's visit," says McGarity with Hampton Farms.
"Better yet, sampling the finished product in-store with recipe handouts and coupons is sure to be a hit. Also, featuring a display for candy apples … that contains all the items needed to make them at home — such as apples, caramel, granulated peanuts and wax paper — is a great way to boost sales in multiple categories."
Use existing in-store resources to promote recipes and cooking ideas to the maximum level. "The California Walnut Board regularly works with registered dietitians and provides support materials — primarily in the form of recipes and nutrition information — that they can share with consumers," says Olmstead.
Dietitians may be particularly helpful when it comes to suggesting post-holiday cooking ideas. "Prunes are also part of the healthy New Year tradition, which should not be overlooked by retailers," says Sunsweet's Harralson. "Consumers increase their purchases of healthy snacks right after the New Year as they start thinking of new goals."
Sunsweet plans to promote a social media program called "I Eat Right Because" between January and March. The campaign will share healthy lifestyle tips from dietitians and fitness advisors via Facebook. The company also offers educational brochures on the health benefits of prunes for retailers. New in-store shippers will include tearpads with recipes and advice for healthy living.
Since nuts and dried fruit are already in the produce department at this time of year, think about how you can cross-merchandise with non-baking items. "During the holidays, we suggest merchandising walnuts near the bagged salads as well as some of the whole foods they pair well with, such as apples, pears, winter squash, yams and green beans," says Olmstead.
Remind consumers that walnuts and other nuts are delicious toasted, candied or spiced. Flavored nuts are a traditional present this time of year, but dried fruit can also be incorporated into gift products. "More consumers are including it in homemade gifts such as their own healthy granola bars, granola and trail mix," says Harralson. "Dried fruit mixed in with other ingredients is popular to give in a Mason jar with instructions for breads or cookies."
Bunting shares another tip for increasing holiday nut and dried fruit sales. "Make sure you're looking at sales from last year and keeping the popular items in stock day in and day out," he stresses. "These are high-profit sales with low labor costs. You don't want to miss any of these sales."
TOPICS:dried fruitHoliday Bakingnutssnacking
Peanuts With Pizzazz
Departments, Dried Fruits & Nuts
Dehydrated Fruits and Veg: Preservation is Back!
Steps to Increase Date and Dried Fig Sales
Dried Apricots Poised For Promotion
CAST YOUR VOTE (CLICK HERE)
RETAILING IN FLORIDA
TWO DECADES OF THE SOUTHEAST PRODUCE COUNCIL
Nogales: One Community's Fresh Legacy
Floral Masters of Innovation
Snacking Opportunities in Produce
See the 2018 Winners
Nomination Form for 2020
The New Face of Hydroponics
As consumer values evolve, retailers take advantage of innovative hydroponic producers to support local, sustainable and environmental ideals. In the midst of a chilly Northeast... Read More
Prepare For Crisis Response
Originally printed in the August 2018 issue of Produce Business. Flowers are needed in a time of crisis. Is your store ready to provide the... Read More
Market Teams Up With NYPD Shield
In June, members of the Hunts Point Terminal Produce Co-Operative Association Inc. hosted a presentation by NYPD Shield, a public-private partnership dedicated to fighting terrorism.... Read More
Family Starts All-Organic Market
More than just a store, 4th Generation educates consumers and promotes organics and a healthy lifestyle Having an organic section in the produce department is... Read More
Shuman Produce
How to Speak Southern Objectives: To promote RealSweet onion brand awareness and acquire email addresses to further engage consumers. Also, to increase Shuman Produce social... Read More
Affiliated Trade Shows & Conferences
At Global Grape Summit, John Pandol Speaks On Challenges Of Grape Multiplicity And Hand-harvesting In Age Of Robotics
In gathering the best and brightest to present at our events, we are proud to have serious people wh [...]
PMA's EAT BRIGHTER Campaign Trumpets Success But The Data Tells Us Nothing About Any Consumption Boost
We've written before about the "Eat Brighter" program in pieces such as these:As PMA [...]
Pundit's Mailbag -Tesco Gets Reviews From Industry Members
Jim Prevor's Perishable Pundit, November 13, 2007Our piece, Tesco Finally Opens Doors...British [...]
The Science Of Product Messaging: How Unbiased Information On Pesticides, Fungicides, Herbicides, Organics, GMO And CRISPR Can A
When Ben Campbell started out with The New York Produce Show and Conference, he was a professor at t [...]
Educational Micro-Session:In Advance Of Federal Mandate On GMO Labeling, Cornell's Miguel Gómez Reexamines Purchasing Beh
Professor Miguel Gómez has presented on a plethora of topics at our industry events:Cornell Professo [...]
Avocados From Mexico Brings Blockchain to The Big Game With its New #AvoNetwork Platform
Avocados From Mexico is excited to announce a new digital experience called #AvoNetwork to bring AFM [...]
PMA Statement from CEO Cathy Burns on the Passing of Frieda's, Inc. CEO and Chairman of the Board Frieda Rapoport Caplan
The Produce Marketing Association global community and its staff are deeply saddened to learn of the [...]
Westfalia Fruit Announces New Capital Investment by US-based Institutional Investor
Westfalia Fruit International Ltd announced today an investment by Boston-based Harvard Management C [...]
Table Grape Growers Association Announces its Spring Summit 2020
The Table Grape Growers Association based in Hermosillo, Mexico (AALPUM), is pleased to announce its [...]
Award Winning Earthcycle Plastic Free Packaging Unveils New Designs at Fruit Logistica 2020
After winning Bronze in the Innovation Award at Fruit Logistica 2019, CKF returns this year with mor [...]
Lobster Sellers Hope New Deal Thaws China Trade
On Wednesday, President Donald Trump signed the first phase of a new trade deal with China with much [...]
South Africa: Rains delay table grape harvests in key region
But fortunately, the potential impact of the rain is limited to only the table grapes that were read [...]
Phil Rindone joins Pandol Bros as director of berry sales
PRESS RELEASE DELANO, Calif –Pandol Brothers., Inc., a leading marketer of table grapes and blueberr [...]
Grocery sector was a star of U.S. holiday period retail sales
Grocery sales were up 2.9% in November and December year-over-year, while most others were below 2% [...]
U.S. avocado, blueberry industries see potential in Chinese market
Lifting barriers on various U.S. imports, the deal signed last Thursday opens processes for blueberr [...]
Berries Australia laments still not having blueberry access to China
Berries Australia president Peter McPherson says it's "frustrating" that blueberry gr [...]
Westfalia Fruit announces new capital investment
Westfalia Fruit announced an investment by a U.S.-based institutional investor that will enable it t [...]
Perishable Movements Ltd takes to floor of Fruit Logistica for first time
The shipping company based in Feltham is planning several significant updates to its fleet of vehicl [...]
Despite drought affecting many areas, South Africa committed to stone fruit
Even with devastating impact on some farmers, Hortgro leader is projecting significant increases for [...]
Australians urged to rally behind growers despite pending price rises
The bushfires and persistent drought have impacted production areas across Australia, as well as roa [...]
Spanish table grapes: New varieties, markets central to future success
President of the nations' growers' and exporters' association forecasts "a 15 pe [...]
Westfalia Fruit International forges new capital investment with US company
The move with Boston-based Harvard Management Company will allow the multinational which has offices [...]
Two UK fresh produce companies earn spots in Top 10 of Fruit Logistica Innovation Awards
Sinclair, with its new EcoLabel, and CN Seeds, which features its Mildew Resistant Sweet Basil, will [...]
Nisa's charity supports good causes with £850k in donations in 2019
Making a Difference Locally, which raises funds in Nisa partner stores through sales of Heritage and [...]
Aldi, Lidl and Ocado lead Christmas period charge as other UK retailers slump
The Big Four find tough sledding in December, but online grocer and discounters find favor with cons [...]
Copyright 2020 - Produce Business - A Phoenix Media Network Publication

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Diplopundit
BBag Archive
FAM-Read
Mandatory Retirement Age
FS Blogmetery
Tag Archives: U.S. Passports
@StateDept's Passport Services Remain Open During Lapse of Appropriations
January 4, 2019 By domani spero in Consular Work, Functional Bureaus, Shutdown, State Department Tags: Bureau of Consular Affairs, State/CA, Trump Shutdown, U.S. Passports
On January 2, Consular Affairs announced that its passport services remain open to process passport applications during the lapse of appropriations:
We continue to offer passport services during the lapse of appropriations for the federal government.
You can still apply for a U.S. passport book or passport card at all passport agencies and centers and acceptance facilities (such as U.S. post offices, libraries, or county clerk's offices) during the lapse of appropriations. You can also renew your passport by mail. Our processing times remain the same: 4-6 weeks for routine service and 2-3 weeks for expedited service.
If you have a scheduled appointment at a U.S. Department of State passport agency or center, please plan on keeping your appointment. If you need to cancel your appointment, you may do so by visiting the Online Passport Appointment System or by calling 1-877-487-2778. If you have a scheduled appointment at a passport acceptance facility and need to cancel your appointment, please contact the facility directly.
We will update this notice if there is a change in passport services during the lapse in appropriations.
@StateDept Issues Guidance For Gender Change in U.S. Passports
August 1, 2018 By domani spero in Consular Work, Functional Bureaus, Regulations, State Department, U.S. Missions Tags: 8 FAM 403.3, CA/PPT/S/A, Foreign Affairs Manual, gender change, gender designation change, passport denial, Passport revocation, State/CA, transwomen, U.S. Passports
Follow @Diplopundit
We've seen reports about the revocation of U.S. passports of at least two transwomen. Revocation typically means the bearer of the passport is not a U.S. national, and that is permanent. Denial of passport applications on the other hand could mean new/additional documents are required before adjudication of the application is completed. In any case, we've asked the State Department for comment about this news and we received the following response from an official, on background:
We have seen reports of a few transgender individuals having difficulty renewing their passports. The Department has not changed policy or practice regarding the adjudication of passport applications for transgender individuals. While we cannot comment on individual passport applications due to privacy concerns, the Department addresses cases individually, and strives to treat all applicants with dignity and respect. We have provided passport services to transgender individuals for many years, and have extensive instructions for such applications on our website. We cannot comment on individual cases, but are not aware of any revocations of passports for transgender individuals.
The State Department's travel.state.gov page has a webpage for gender designation change here.
On June 27, 2018, the Bureau of Consular Affairs (CA/PPT/S/A) did issue a policy guidance on Gender Change that appears new with no superseding guidance as best we could tell. They are now now incorporated in the Foreign Affairs Manual under 8 FAM 403.3. So we asked the State Department if this is new guidance and we were told the following:
The Department has not changed policy or practice regarding the adjudication of passport applications for transgender individuals. The Department's policy guidelines were introduced on June 10, 2010. Since that point, medical certification of final gender reassignment surgery was no longer a requirement for issuance of a passport in the changed gender. Certification from an attending medical physician stating that the applicant has undergone appropriate clinical treatment for gender transition is acceptable. If CA receives an appropriate certification that transition is complete from a licensed physician, a full-validity passport will be issued.
Per 8 FAM 403.3 dated June 27, 2017 note the following:
a. This subchapter provides policy and procedures that passport specialists and consular officers ("you") must follow when an applicant indicates a gender on the "sex" line on the passport application with information different from the one reflected on some or all of the submitted citizenship and/or identity evidence, including a prior passport.
b. This policy explains the need for medical certification from a licensed physician who has treated the applicant or reviewed and evaluated the medical history of the applicant regarding the change in gender, as well as the need for accurate identification and a photograph reflecting the applicants current appearance. It is based on standards and recommendations of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), recognized as the authority in this field by the American Medical Association (AMA).
c. A passport is defined by INA 101(a)(30) (Immigration and Nationality Act) (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(30)) as "any travel document issued by competent authority showing the bearer's origin, identity, and nationality if any, which is valid for the entry of the bearer into a foreign country." An individual's gender is an integral part of that person's identity.
d. Sex reassignment surgery is not a prerequisite for passport issuance based on gender change.
e. Medical certification of gender transition from a licensed physician as described in 8 FAM 403.3-2 is the only documentation of gender change required. Other medical records must not be requested.
f. A form DS-11 Application for U.S. Passport must be used the first time an applicant applies for a passport in reassigned gender, as personal appearance for execution is required, even if the applicant has a previous passport. A change in gender is a change in the identity of the applicant, and evidence of identity in the new name (if applicable) and gender must be presented. Subsequent applications in the same gender may be submitted on a form DS-82 if the applicant is eligible (see 8 FAM 702.2 regarding eligibility to apply on a form DS-82 and 8 FAM 403.3-3(D) regarding resumption of the birth gender).
The State Department official on background told us that "If CA receives an appropriate certification that transition is complete from a licensed physician, a full-validity passport will be issued."
The June 27 guidance notes that "A full validity U.S. passport will be issued reflecting a new gender upon presentation of a signed, original certification or statement, on office letterhead, from a licensed physician who has treated the applicant for her/his gender-related care or reviewed and evaluated the gender-related medical history of the applicant." It does not mention the requirement for full transition. When we seek clarification, the same State Department official on background told us the following:
If an applicant is in the beginning stages of transition, a limited passport will be issued to the individual. This can be replaced within two years from the date of issuance for a full validity passport at no-cost to the applicant once CA receives medical certification of the appropriate clinical treatment for gender transition.
The June 27 guidance also says that "The applicant is not required to obtain an amended birth record, amended Consular Report of Birth (CRBA), or to request that the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issue a replacement Certificate of Naturalization/Citizenship reflecting the change of gender." But also that "State law in the United States and the laws of other countries vary on whether an amended birth certificate may be issued reflecting a gender change".
Applicants are required to provide primary and secondary IDs in their new gender. Th guidance says "Some form of photographic ID must be presented; You cannot use the doctor's certification as the only evidence to identify an applicant."
Medical certifications from persons who are not licensed physicians (e.g. psychologists; physician assistants; nurse practitioners; and others) are not/not acceptable.
8 FAM 403.3-8 has the sample letter for licensed physicians certifying to the applicant's gender change/transition.
The guidance also includes a section on "conversations with passport applicants seeking to document gender change/transition", for passport adjudicators:
1) As with all passport applicants, you must be sensitive and respectful at all times;
2) Refer to the applicant by the pronoun appropriate to her/his new gender even if the transition is not complete.
3) Ask only appropriate questions regarding information necessary to determine citizenship and identity of the applicant.
Trans Women Say the State Department Is Retroactively Revoking Their Passports https://t.co/zFxoEHBwKQ pic.twitter.com/VI21exNYmx
— them. (@them) July 27, 2018
Today I was denied a renewal of my US Passport and told I would need to get a judge to unseal child welfare records from Foster care in order to "prove" my US Citizenship. Despite having had all "Female" ID since 1999, they are now demanding "Proof of Transition" for the 1st time
— Danni Askini (@danniaskini) June 29, 2018
Wow. The U.S. passport office just called and told me that due to an "error," the government has *retroactively invalidated* the change of gender marker it authorized on my passport last year. They won't renew my passport w/ correct name & gender until i submit a new doctors note
— ✨ 𝕵𝖆𝖓𝖚𝖘 𝕽𝖔𝖘𝖊 ✨ (@zenalbatross) July 25, 2018
U.S. Passport Identifiers For Registered Sex Offenders Went Into Effect on Oct 31, 2017
December 1, 2017 By domani spero in Consular Work, Federal Agencies, Functional Bureaus, Govt Documents, Regulations, State Department, Technology and Work Tags: Angel Watch Center, child sex tourism, DHS/ICE, International Megan's Law, passport identifier, Passport revocation, registered sex offenders, State/CA/PPT, U.S. Passports
Posted: 1:34 pm PT
Via State/CA:
The passport identifier provision of International Megan's Law to Prevent Child Exploitation and Other Sexual Crimes Through Advanced Notification of Traveling Sex Offenders (IML) (Public Law 114-119) went into effect on October 31, 2017.
The IML prohibits the Department of State from issuing a passport to a covered sex offender without a unique identifier, and it allows for the revocation of passports previously issued to these individuals that do not contain the identifier (22 USC 212b).
The identifier is a passport endorsement, currently printed inside the back cover of the passport book, which reads: "The bearer was convicted of a sex offense against a minor, and is a covered sex offender pursuant to 22 United States Code Section 212b(c)(l)." Since endorsements cannot be printed on passport cards, covered sex offenders cannot be issued passport cards.
Only the DHS/ICE Angel Watch Center (AWC) can certify an individual as a "covered sex offender." Therefore, any questions by the applicant about such status must be directed to and resolved by AWC.
Applicants who have questions for AWC regarding their status or believe they have been wrongly identified as a covered sex offender as defined in Title 22 United States Code 212b(c)(1) should contact AWC at DHSintermeganslaw@ice.dhs.gov.
On February 08, 2016, President Obama signed into law H.R. 515, the "International Megan's Law to Prevent Child Exploitation and Other Sexual Crimes Through Advanced Notification of Traveling Sex Offenders," which (1) authorizes the Department of Homeland Security's Angel Watch Center and the Department of Justice's National Sex Offender Targeting Center to send and receive notifications to or from foreign countries regarding international travel by registered sex offenders; and (2) requires the Department of State to include unique identifiers on passports issued to registered sex offenders.
According to DHS/ICE, its Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Operation Angel Watch was initially created in 2007 and is managed by the Child Exploitation Investigations Unit of the ICE Cyber Crimes Center and is a joint effort with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. Marshals Service. Operation Angel Watch targets individuals who have been previously convicted of sexual crimes against a child and who may pose a potential new threat: traveling overseas for the purpose of sexually abusing or exploiting minors, a crime known as "child sex tourism."
Through Operation Angel Watch, HSI uses publicly available sex offender registry information and passenger travel data to strategically alert foreign law enforcement partners through its HSI attaché offices of a convicted child predator's intent to travel to their country. In Fiscal Year 2015, HSI made over 2,100 notifications to more than 90 countries.
All U.S. Passports Invalid for Travel to North Korea Without Special Validation Effective 9/1/17
September 1, 2017 By domani spero in Consular Work, EAP|East Asia, Regulations, State Department, U.S. Missions Tags: Bureau of Consular Affairs, North Korea, special validation, U.S. Passports
Posted: 11:37 am PT
[twitter-follow screen_name='Diplopundit']
On July 21, the Department of State declared that all U.S. passports are invalid for travel to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) unless the travel meets certain criteria.
The Department of State has determined that the serious risk to United States nationals of arrest and long-term detention represents imminent danger to the physical safety of United States nationals traveling to and within the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), within the meaning of 22 CFR 51.63(a)(3). Therefore, pursuant to the authority of 22 U.S.C. 211a and Executive Order 11295 (31 FR 10603), and in accordance with 22 CFR 51.63(a)(3), all United States passports are declared invalid for travel to, in, or through the DPRK unless specially validated for such travel, as specified at 22 CFR 51.64. The restriction on travel to the DPRK shall be effective 30 days after publication of this Notice, and shall remain in effect for one year unless extended or sooner revoked by the Secretary of State.
The notice was published in the Federal Register on August 2, 2017.
photo from travel.state.gov
Per 22 CFR 51.63 Passports invalid for travel into or through restricted areas;
(a) The Secretary may restrict the use of a passport for travel to or use in a country or area which the Secretary has determined is:
(1) A country with which the United States is at war; or
(2) A country or area where armed hostilities are in progress; or
(3) A country or area in which there is imminent danger to the public health or physical safety of United States travelers.
(b) Any determination made and restriction imposed under paragraph
(a) of this section, or any extension or revocation of the restriction, shall be published in the Federal Register.
Per 22 CFR 51.64 Special validation of passports for travel to restricted areas.
(a) A U.S. national may apply to the Department for a special validation of his or passport to permit its use for travel to, or use in, a restricted country or area. The application must be accompanied by evidence that the applicant falls within one of the categories in paragraph (c) of this section.
(b) The Department may grant a special validation if it determines that the validation is in the national interest of the United States.
(c) A special validation may be determined to be in the national interest if:
(1) The applicant is a professional reporter or journalist, the purpose of whose trip is to obtain, and make available to the public, information about the restricted area; or
(2) The applicant is a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross or the American Red Cross traveling pursuant to an officially-sponsored Red Cross mission; or
(3) The applicant's trip is justified by compelling humanitarian considerations; or
(4) The applicant's request is otherwise in the national interest.
An Embarrassing Renewal Mix-Up? Which Passport Still Has The Points Guy's Photograph?
March 2, 2016 By domani spero in Functional Bureaus, Security, Social Media, State Department Tags: Connecticut Passport Agency, National Passport Information Center, State/CA/PPT, The Points Guy, U.S. Passports	2 Comments
Posted: 1:52 am EDT
[twitter-follow screen_name='Diplopundit' ]
This story via The Points Guy:
[O]n the bright side, I did need to get my passport renewed anyway so no big loss, right? Wrong. A few weeks later, my passport is delivered. Wait, let me rephrase that: My information is displayed on my passport, but not my face. I may be blond haired and blue eyed, but this girl in the picture was not me.
I spent the next few days calling and calling the National Passport Information Center trying to reach an operator that will take my story seriously. No one has ever heard of this happening before, no one believes me and asking "Are you sure?" really doesn't do much good. Am I sure that this photo is not of my face? Yes I am.
After a week, I ended up going to speak to someone in person at the Connecticut Passport Agency in the hopes that someone there would be able to understand the situation and help me correct it. After going through an airport-like security system and having to explain why I was there, I was finally sent upstairs and eventually passed off from one employee to another since, spoiler alert, they don't believe me either, even with passport in hand. The last woman looked on the computer, found not a single trace of this other girl's face and called her supervisor, then her supervisor's supervisor — all while looking at me like I had five heads.
An embarrassing US passport renewal mix-up… https://t.co/BfdewBrIQx pic.twitter.com/nGGdGOdqRJ
— The Points Guy (@thepointsguy) February 29, 2016
Passport processing is done by people so human error is part of a system where mistakes can be minimized but cannot be completely eliminated. However, there has to be a better way to respond when something like this happens. We've been to one of these domestic passport agencies last year and it actually reminds us of the DMV. It was clear to us, at least at the site that we visited, that no one thought through the customer flow. You get an appointment via telephone, and then you show up and fall in line to go into the building, fall in line to get through the door, check with the guard (like every single one before you) on where to go next, fall in line again to get a priority number, sit (if you can find a chair, otherwise stand) and wait, and a couple hours later your name is called to the window where you write a $90 check for expeditious processing (state.gov says expedited fee is $60).
In any case, we're wondering, which passport still has The Points Guy's photograph?
Omar v. Kerry, et.al: Passport Revocation "Arbitrary and Capricious," New Hearing Ordered Within 60 Days
February 18, 2016 By domani spero in Americans Abroad, Consular Work, Court Cases, Foreign Service, Functional Bureaus, John F. Kerry, Regulations, State Department, Trends, U.S. Missions Tags: Brenda Sprague, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Mosed Shaye Omar, Omar v. Kerry et al, Passport revocation, U.S. District Court of the Northern District of California, U.S. Passports, US Embassy Sana'a, Yemen, Yemeni-American
Back in April 2015, a San Francisco man sued the State Department in federal court, claiming that American embassy officials in Yemen illegally revoked his passport and left him stranded in that country for more than a year. This passport revocation case was just one in a string of lawsuits alleging improper revocation of passports by the U.S. Embassy in Yemen.
On October 13, the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of California ordered the State Department to return the U.S. passport of Yemeni-American Mosed Shaye Omar which was revoked "based on the involuntary statement he provided at the U.S. Embassy in Sana'a on January 23, 2013." (See Court orders @StateDept to return Yemeni-American's improperly revoked U.S.passport).
On February 16, the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of California issued a cross motions for summary judgment:
This lawsuit presents the question of whether the United States government may revoke a United States citizen's passport based solely on a purported "confession" that the citizen did not write, dictate, read, or have read to him, but did in fact sign. On the record before the Court, the answer is no.
Plaintiff Mosed Shaye Omar, a United States citizen, challenges the revocation of his passport following his interrogation and detention at the U.S. Embassy in Sana'a, Yemen. Plaintiff was stranded in Yemen for 13 months before he was provided written notice of the basis for his passport revocation and granted a temporary passport to return home to the United States. Plaintiff challenges the passport revocation and the constitutionality of the post-revocation proceedings wherein he sought return of his passport. The Court previously granted Plaintiff's motion for a preliminary injunction and ordered the government to return Plaintiff's passport. The now pending cross-motions for summary judgment followed. Having considered the parties' submissions, including their supplemental briefs, and having had the benefit of oral argument on December 17, 2015, the Court GRANTS Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment and DENIES the government's cross-motion. The government's revocation of Plaintiff's passport predicated solely on his "confession" was arbitrary and capricious. The matter is therefore REMANDED for a new hearing within 60 days.
[T]he only evidence in the record regarding the statement—other than the statement itself—is Plaintiff's declaration attesting that he had no knowledge of what he was signing and that he was coerced into signing the statement based on the government's false representation that if he did so he would obtain his and his daughter's passports. The government does not offer any other evidence, including any evidence as to how the statement came about. On this record the statement itself is not substantial evidence supporting the government's revocation decision.
Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley further writes:
It is inconceivable that Plaintiff would bear the burden of proving that he did not use a false name in obtaining his passport where he had no right to know the evidence against him in advance. Such a practice would run afoul of the fundamental nature of our system of justice.
The court record notes that "Plaintiff, through his counsel, repeatedly asked for a copy of the statement upon which his passport revocation was based; however, the government refused to provide it until the parties exchanged simultaneous briefs seven days before the hearing. (AR 83-90.) The government similarly declined counsel's request for a continuance of the hearing to allow counsel to prepare as they were only retained a month before the hearing. (AR 52-55.)"
The court has remanded the case to the State Department for a new hearing within 60 days:
The Court thus remands for a new hearing within 60 days. 22 C.F.R. § 51.70(c). As noted above, the government shall bear the burden of establishing that Plaintiff's passport was properly revoked pursuant to 22 C.F.R. § 51.62(a)(2). Both parties agree, and indeed request, that the Court retain jurisdiction following remand. Because it is within the Court's discretion to do so, the Court agrees to retain jurisdiction pending the remand.
For the reasons stated above, the Court GRANTS Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment and DENIES Defendant's motion for summary judgment. This matter is remanded to the State Department for proceedings consistent with this Order, including a new hearing within 60 days under 22 C.F.R. § 51.70(c). The Court's preliminary injunction remains in effect and Plaintiff shall retain possession of his passport during these administrative proceedings, and until he is afforded a full and fair hearing regarding the government's allegation that Plaintiff's passport is subject to revocation under 22 C.F.R. § 51.62(a)(2).8 Within 30 days of the conclusion of the administrative proceedings, the parties shall provide a joint status report detailing how they wish to proceed.
Read the full document below or see the original post here.
US Embassy Yemen: Revocation of U.S. Passports, a Growing Trend?).
Stranded in Yemen: Americans left to find own way out, but exactly how many more AmCits are left there?
New Travel Warning for Yemen — Don't Come; If In Country, Leave! But Some Can't Leave
IOM Seeks $10M Initial Funds For Humanitarian Evacuation of 11,000+ Fm Yemen, And Wassup With the F-77?
For U.S. Citizens in Yemen, a New Website and a New Hashtag Shows Up: #StuckInYemen
State Dept Suspends US Embassy Yemen Operations, Relocates Staff Until Further Notice
U.S. Embassy Yemen Now on Evacuation … No, on Temporary Reduction of Staff Status
Why Are Court Cases Related to US Passports and Immigrant Visas in Yemen and Pakistan Sealed?
November 19, 2015 By domani spero in Ambassadors, Americans Abroad, Consular Work, Court Cases, Foreign Service, Functional Bureaus, Oversight, State Department, Trends, U.S. Missions, Visas Tags: Bureau of Consular Affairs, Immigrant Visas, Pakistan, Passport revocation, sealed court cases, State/CA, State/OIG, U.S. Passports, US Embassy Islamabad, US Embassy Sana'a, Yemen
This past October, we blogged that the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of California ordered the State Department to return the U.S. passport of Yemeni-American Mosed Shaye Omar which was revoked "based on the involuntary statement he provided at the U.S. Embassy in Sana'a on January 23, 2013" (see Court orders @StateDept to return Yemeni-American's improperly revoked U.S.passport).
While researching another court case, we discovered the Hasan v. State Department case. This is a case where the petitioner asked for judicial review of a US Embassy Yemen consular official's decision of ineligibility for an immigrant visa on behalf of a minor child. Following the filing of this case and the closure of the US Embassy in Sanaa, the US Embassy in Cairo apparently became the post designated to handle visa applications from Yemen. US Embassy Cairo reviewed the prior ineligibility, reversed US Embassy Sana'a's decision and issued the immigrant visa. The parties subsequently agreed to dismissed this case with prejudice at no cost to Mr. Hasan or the State Department. Except for the court ruling stipulating the dismissal of the case, all other files related to this case are sealed in court.
1:15-cv-04312-GHW | Hasan v. U.S. Department of State et al.
A closer look at other cases filed in the New York District Court indicates several other court cases against the State Department, US Embassy Yemen, US Embassy Pakistan, Ambassador Matthew Tueller, Ambassador Richard Olson and related federal agencies have also been sealed.
We suspect that these are cases related either to U.S. passport revocations, non-issuance of U.S. passports or immigrant visas in Yemen and Pakistan.
Following the federal court decision ordering the State Department to return the passport improperly revoked by the State Department, we asked State/OIG about this trend and we're told that the OIG does not have "anything on this issue on which it can comment." It was suggested that we check with Consular Affairs. And of course, we have previously asked CA about this, but we do not really expect them to address this in terms of oversight.
The court documents in the Omar case suggest that Consular Affairs is revoking U.S. passports contrary to the rules in the Foreign Affairs Manual. But this is not the only case. If all similar cases have the same threshold as the Omar case, it is deeply troubling not only because the revocation appears not to follow State Department's written guidance, State also never seek to denaturalized the plaintiff. Which basically leaves the plaintiff still a citizen of this country but unable to travel anywhere.
Which brings us to the question as to why these court files are sealed in court. It is possible that these cases all relate to minor children, could that be the reason for sealing the court records? Or is it something else?
Below are some of the cases we've located; all sealed unless noted otherwise:
1:15-cv-06425-NGG | Abdu v. U.S. Department of State et al — filed on 11/10/2015. Defendants include Secretary Kerry and US Ambassador to Yemen Matthew Tueller.
1:15-cv-05684-FB | Alzonkary et al v. Holder et al — filed on 10/02/2015. Defendants include Secretary Kerry, US Embassy Yemen's Ambassador Tueller and CA's Michelle Bond.
1:15-cv-05587-JG | Mansour Fadhil et al (on behalf of minor children). Defendants include Secretary Kerry.
1:15-cv-06436-FM | Al Zokary v. United States Department of State et al. Defendants include Secretary Kerry and US Embassy Yemen's Ambassador Tueller
1:15-cv-04312-GHW | Hasan v. U.S. Department of State et al. Defendants include Secretary Kerry and US Embassy Yemen's Ambassador Tueller. The case was dismissed in August 2015 with a stipulation that it be dismissed with prejudice and without costs or attorney's fees to either party. All files except the Stipulation are sealed.
1:15-cv-01767-ILG | Hasan et al v. U.S. Department of State et al. Defendants include Secretary Kerry and US Ambassador to Pakistan Richard Olson.
1:14-cv-07093-PAC | Issa et al v. Holder et al. Defendants include Secretary Kerry and US Embassy Yemen's Ambassador Tueller.
1:14-cv-02584-ER | Alsaidi v. U.S. Department of State et al. Defendants include Secretary Kerry and Karen H. Sasahara in her official capacity as charge d'affaires ad interime of the U.S. embassy in Sana'a, Yemen. The case was dismissed in 2014 with a stipulation that it be dismissed with prejudice and without costs or attorney's fees to either party. All files remained sealed.
1:13-cv-06872-PKC | Mohammad et al v. Beers et al. Defendants include Secretary Kerry. The case was voluntarily dismissed in July 2014, all files remained sealed.
2:13-cv-04178-ADS | Arif et al v. Kerry et al. Defendants include Secretary Kerry and Embassy Islamabad's Ambassador Olson. The case was dismissed with prejudice in September 2013, with each party bearing its own costs, fees, including attorney's fees, and disbursements. The files remained sealed.
One passport case from November 2013, 1:13-cv-08299-AJP Kassim v. Kerry is not sealed. The case was dismissed in March 2014 with a court order for issuance of U.S. passport to plaintiff. "Within 30 days of the entry of this order, Plaintiff will submit to the Department of State a new un-executed but signed passport application (Form DS-11) with passport photos and a copy of the front and back of a valid government identification card. The Department of State will issue Plaintiff a U.S. passport book and a U.S. passport card within 30 days of receipt of Plaintiffs passport application and supporting documentation (described above in subsection 2(a)). This action is hereby withdrawn and dismissed with prejudice and without costs or attorney's fees."
One immigrant visa case from 2014, 1:14-cv-03748-KAM | Chaudhry et al v. Holder et al. is also not sealed. The defendants include Secretary Kerry and Embassy Islamabad's Ambassador Olson. The case was voluntarily dismissed with prejudice in light of the State Department granting of an immigrant visa to Plaintiff.
PSA: No More Extra U.S. Passport Pages After Dec 31, 2015
November 18, 2015 By domani spero in Americans Abroad, Consular Work, Foreign Service, Public Service, Social Media, State Department, U.S. Missions, Visas Tags: Next Generation Passport, passport pages, PSA, public service announcement, U.S. Passports, US Embassy Bangkok
Posted: 12:31 am EDT
We've previously blogged about this back in April (see Next Generation U.S. Passport To Roll Out in 2016, No More Additional Page Insert Starting Jan 1, 2016). The US Embassy Bangkok below has a reminder, that extra pages will no longer be available after December 31, 2015. Check your nearest embassy or consulate if you need additional pages before then.
After Dec 31, 2015, the State Dept. will no longer add extra visa pages to U.S. passports: https://t.co/DhlD0o0v3r pic.twitter.com/y4YSkTo5eO
— ACS Bangkok (@ACSBKK) November 12, 2015
State Dept Suspends All Tarrant County (Texas) Passport Processing Authority
July 9, 2015 By domani spero in Consular Work, Diplomatic Security, Functional Bureaus, Security, State Department Tags: Bureau of Consular Affairs, Investigations, passport processing, State/CA, U.S. Passports
Posted: 12:50 am PDT
Tarrant County can't take passport applications because of 'issue' with State Department http://t.co/lrBbRPfGrN
— Diplopundit (@Diplopundit) July 8, 2015
The Star Telegram reports that the State Department has suspended all Tarrant County (Texas – Ft Worth's county) acceptance agents' authority to accept passport applications.
The Tarrant County district clerk's office cannot process passport applications until an investigation into a "possible infraction" is completed by the U.S. State Department, County Administrator G.K. Maenius said Tuesday.
The district clerk's office has not been able to accept applications since it was notified by the State Department of the investigation on June 25, Maenius said.
The clerk's office has processed about 33,000 applications so far this year. As a registered agent of the State Department, the office has been handling passport applications since 1999, currently at six locations around the county.
One prospective passport applicant told the Star that she could not even pick up the paperwork for the passport application nor get any information about passports from one of the processing sites in the county.
The Tarrant County website posted the following information:
via Tarrant County, TX
NBCDFW.com says that the order comes amid a federal investigation into the use of fraudulent documents to obtain passports in Tarrant County and whether clerks followed proper procedures, according to a person familiar with the case.
Later on July 8, NBC5 reports that the Department of State confirmed it is investigating Tarrant County's passport office and had ordered the county to stop taking passport applications but would say little else.
"We can confirm that all passport acceptance facilities in Tarrant County, Texas, have temporarily suspended accepting U.S. passport applications," a State Department spokeswoman said in an emailed statement. "As a review is ongoing, we cannot comment on further details."
Last May, a Grand Jury in the Southern District of Texas indicted three women charged with nine counts of wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in connection with the alleged use of U.S. passport information from the Houston Passport Office. (See U.S. Passport Agency Contractor, Two Others Indicted for Alleged Use of Stolen Passport Information). That case is currently pending in the Southern District of Texas in Houston. Jury selection and trial in that case is set for October 13, 2015.
State Dept's Consular Database Problems Dash Plans, Dreams … Also Cost Up to $1M/Day in California
June 16, 2015 By domani spero in Consular Work, Foreign Service, Functional Bureaus, Security, Shutdown, Social Media, State Department, Technology and Work, Trends, Visas Tags: Bureau of Consular Affairs, CCD, CCD crash, Consular Consolidated Database, Consular Systems and Technology, glitch, State/CA, State/CA/CST, U.S. Passports
Posted: 4:46 pm EDT
On June 12, we posted about the technical problems with the State Department's overseas passport and visa systems. Passport applications accepted overseas on or after May 26, 2015 are affected but emergency passports are available. A hardware failure on June 9 halted the flow of biometric clearance requests from posts to the State Department's Consular Consolidated Database (CCD). Individuals who submitted online applications or were interviewed for visas on or after June 9 are affected and are asked to reschedule appointments . No emergency visas available. See State Dept's Overseas Passport and Visa Systems Hit By Glitch Again, Suspends Issuance.
On June 15, the Bureau of Consular Affairs posted the following update on its Facebook page but not on its travel.state.gov news page:
We continue to experience technical problems with our visa systems. This issue is not specific to any particular country or visa category. We apologize for the inconvenience and we are working around the clock to correct the problem. Currently, we are unable to print most immigrant and nonimmigrant visas approved after June 8, 2015. In addition, U.S. embassies and consulates are unable to process new applications submitted on or after June 9, 2015. If you have a visa interview appointment scheduled for June 14-20, 2015, and you submitted your DS-160 online application **after June 9, 2015,** you should reschedule your appointment. If you submitted your DS-160 online application prior to June 9, 2015, you should plan to attend your scheduled visa interview appointment. Our embassies and consulates will be posting location-specific information on their websites, so please check the website of the location where you applied for your visa for more information.
The technical issues also affected the Department of State's ability to adjudicate applications for U.S. passports accepted overseas between May 26 and June 14, 2015. If you applied for a U.S. passport overseas during this time frame and have travel plans within the next 10 business days, please consider requesting an emergency passport at the U.S. embassy or consulate at which you originally applied. Information about how to apply for an emergency passport is available on the embassy/consulate website.
The previous time the CCD crashed big time was last summer (see State Dept's Critical National Security Database Crashes, Melts Global Travelers' Patience). It could just be a coincidence (or not!) but the crash has now happened twice during the peak travel season. During the meltdown last summer, CA said that CCD was going to have an upgrade at the end of 2014. It also said at that time that the upgrade plan included two redundant systems. If this glitch started on May 26th, we're approaching the three week-mark. And so far, those redundant systems are missing in action.
The Bureau of Consular Affairs on its FAQ states that "This is not the same issue as last year." But we learned from an unofficial source that "All line officers know that last summer's CCD glitch was never completely fixed."
So, which is it?
On June 15, the Wall Street Journal reported that the CCD glitch has left agricultural workers stranded at the border just as the summer harvest gets under way. Jason Resnick, the general counsel for the Western Growers Association, which represents farmers in California, Arizona and Colorado calls this glitch, "a crisis." Apparently, more than 1,000 workers who expected H-2A agricultural visas are stuck on the Mexican side of the border, where motels are overflowing.
"The workers are overdue to start harvesting berries and other crops on U.S. farms. Mr. Resnick estimated that California agriculture, already stressed by drought, is losing $500,000 to $1 million for each day of delay."
Visa Glitch Stalls Workers, Strains U.S. Farms http://t.co/NOCWK1Pa3r via @WSJ
— Diplopundit (@Diplopundit) June 16, 2015
The State Department's consular operation is an enormous one with many parts and affects a large number of travelers. The State Department issued 9,932,480 nonimmigrant/temporary visas in FY2014. It issued 467,370 immigrant/permanent visas in FY2014. During the same period, domestic and overseas passport offices issued 14,087,341 U.S. passports (including 1,463,191 passport cards).
A small fraction of those frustrated travelers have taken to Facebook to connect with Consular Affairs.
One who is stuck in Canada and could not return to her 14th month old baby writes:
Hi, do you have any timeline to fix the issues? I live in Boston, US & visited Vancouver, BC consulate on June 10th for my visa interview. visa officer told me that your visa is approved and you will get your passport back in 3 days. However, since June 10th, there is no update on my visa. I also inquired with Vancouver Consulate and they are ready to give me passport back without visa. As a matter of fact, I can't enter into US legally until and unless I got printed Visa. My 14th month baby is waiting in Boston,MA and I got stuck here. Can't do anything.
Here's one waiting to be reunited with a loved one after a long wait:
Waiting is excruciating my husband was approved on june 10th and my mother has passed away. We need him home please get this fixed our application has been in since 2013.
Somebody who is pregnant, stuck in Mexico writes:
I am currently 8 months pregnant and have been waiting for my TD visa renewal since mid May. Since I will soon have travel restrictions to fly back home, does this qualify as an urgent humanitarian situation where I should contact the embassy in Mexico directly?
One who missed grandma's funeral makes a plea:"
Can you tell us a estimated time??? My case was expedited and I miss my Grandmother funeral. Me and my wife were supposed to travel yesterday. Please get this fixed.please
A family stuck in Mexico:
Do you have an ETA in order for ys to plan accordingly? I had my appointment on friday june 12th and I am stuck in Mexico (H1B renewal) without passport and without the ability to get back to work in Boston. Flight fees, hotel fees and a family of 4 that needs to get back to Boston.
Some people missing a convention:
My wife and I have a flight to ny tom. Our visa were approved on 9th. We are part of 100+ group attending a convention. Do we expect to get our passports with visas today?
Somebody stuck in Guatemala, fears loss of a job:
All my documents were in order and approved June 1st. my husband and I are in a dire situation stuck in Guatemala. I'm at risk of losing my job if I don't return to USA.
A frustrated somebody who calls out other technical issues:
There's always something wrong. There are already technical issues with payment of IV fees, DS260 and DS261. This system needs to be revamped. What's the government doing about this?!
A Romanian group who worked and saved to attend the Genius Olympiad:
We are desperate. We have a plane ticker for tomorrow and we were supposed to go to an international competition (Genius Olympiad) in Oswego, NYC. Apart from the part that we lost thousands of dollars, our hopes got crashed because we worked for a year at our projects and invested a lot of time and monney… For… Nothing?!?!?! How come you have no plan B for solving this issue? We tried making an appointment more than one month ago and they said on the 9th on june will be our interview, we said it s too late for us but they said that the visa will be delivered within 2 days maximum. And here we are 5 days later with no visas, with crashed hopes, tons of lost monney, wasted time… Should i go on??
State Dept's Critical National Security Database Crashes, Melts Global Travelers' Patience (diplopundit.net)
State Dept Answers FAQ on Ongoing Visa and Passport Database Performance Issues (diplopundit.net)
State Department's "Technical Difficulties" Continue Worldwide, So What About the CCD?
State Dept Spox on outages at embassies: "separate", "unconnected", "unrelated" — wowie zowie!
Burn Bag: Consular Leadership Tenet #5: Something Seriously Wrong With the CCD. Communicate?
INAUGURATION DAY 2021!
Biden Inauguration DayJanuary 20, 2021
Burn Bag
Submissions accepted via BurnBag Mail or other anonymized email. Please include "BURN BAG" in subject line.
WARNING: Stay away from diplopundit.COM
Aww, @StateDept Sends Official Take Down Request For April Fools' Day Cable
Uh-oh! What's going on?
Follow and receive notification of new posts by email.
Just Laugh — Weekends Only
Shop at Our Curated Amazon Store
Recently …
Biden to Nominate Wendy Sherman as State/D, Toria Nuland as State/P January 7, 2021
World Watches With Shock as Trump Mob Storms United States Capitol January 6, 2021
Goodbye 2020, a Most Cruel Year! December 31, 2020
Around the U.S. Diplomatic Service: Holiday Greetings 2020 December 26, 2020
CA's Carl Risch Reportedly Quit Over the Weekend, Decamps to DOJ December 22, 2020
Reactions From President-Elect @JoeBiden's Nominees November 24, 2020
GSA's Emily Murphy Finally Signs Off on Official #BidenTransition November 24, 2020
It's Official: @Transition46 Announces Blinken, Mayorkas, Thomas-Greenfield, Haines, Sullivan, and @JohnKerry November 23, 2020
President-Elect @JoeBiden to Name Aide and Former State/D Tony Blinken as 71st Secretary of State November 23, 2020
President-Elect @JoeBiden to Name Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield as UN Ambassador November 23, 2020
1998 East Africa Embassy Bombings Accountability Review Board ADST Oral History Afghanistan AFSA Ambassadorships American Foreign Service Association ARB ARB Benghazi Australia Authorized Departure Barack Obama Benghazi Benghazi Consulate Attack Blognotes Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) Brian Bulatao Bureau of Consular Affairs Bureau of Diplomatic Security Bureau of Human Resources Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations Bureau of Public Affairs Burn Bag Canada Cheryl Mills China Civil Service Civil unrest clinton emails Colombia confirmations COVID-19 COVID19 pandemic Crime and Safety Cuba Daily Press Briefing data breach Deputy Secretary of State DGHR DHS Diplomatic Security Service Donald J. Trump Donald Trump EEOC EFM jobs EFMs Egypt Elizabeth Colton Emergency Message FBI FOIA Foreign Affairs Manual Foreign Service Foreign Service Grievance Board Fourth of July France FS families FS family members FSGB FSNs FSNs Killed FSOs Killed GAO Heather Higginbottom HFAC Hillary Clinton House Oversight and Government Reform Committee India Iran Iraq Israel Japan John Bolton John F. Kerry John Kerry John Kirby John Sullivan Kenya Kristie Kenney Lebanon LGBT Libya Mali Mandatory Retirement Marie Harf Marie L. Yovanovitch Mexico Michael R. Pompeo Michael Richard Pompeo Mike Pompeo Norway NYT Office of Inspector General official spokesperson OIG OPM OPM hack Ordered Departure Pakistan Patrick F. Kennedy Patrick Kennedy Peter Van Buren Philippines Photo of the Day Presentation of Credentials Raymond Maxwell redesign Rex Tillerson Richard Olson RUMINT Russia S/OCR Saudi Arabia Secretary of State Travels Security Message Senate Confirmations Senate Foreign Relations Committee Senior Foreign Service sexual assault sexual harassment SFRC SFRC Hearing SIGAR Snapshot South Korea South Sudan State/CA State/DS State/EUR State/FSI State/HR State/INL State/M State/MED State/NEA State/OBO State/OIG State/PA State/WHA State Department Steve Linick Susan Pompeo Susan Rice swearing-in Syria Thomas Pickering Travel Warning Trump Nominations Trump Shutdown Trump White House Turkey Twitter U.S. Passports Ukraine Under Secretary for Management USAID USAID/OIG USCG Ho Chi Minh City USCG Istanbul USDOJ US Embassy Ankara US Embassy Baghdad US Embassy Bamako US Embassy Bangkok US Embassy Beijing US Embassy Beirut US Embassy Bogota US Embassy Cairo US Embassy Caracas US Embassy Havana US Embassy Islamabad US Embassy Kabul US Embassy Kyiv US Embassy London US Embassy Manila US Embassy Moscow US Embassy Nairobi US Embassy Paris US Embassy Sana'a US Embassy Seoul US Embassy Tel Aviv US Embassy Tokyo US Embassy Tripoli US Embassy Tunis US Embassy Wellington US Mission Afghanistan US Mission China US Mission Iraq US Mission Mexico US Mission Pakistan US Mission Russia US Mission Turkey USUN Venezuela Victoria Nuland Vietnam WaPo White House Yemen YouTube
American Academy of Diplomacy
American Diplomacy | UNC
American Foreign Service Association
Associates of the American Foreign Service Worldwide
Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies
Tales from a Small Planet (Real Post Reports)
Una Chapman Cox Foundation
Bloggers' Rights | EFF
Media Risk Consultants
Project on Government Oversight
Blog Dailies
The Consuls' Files
A Daring Adventure
Dead Men Working
The Dinoia Family
Diplo Denizen
Email From the Embassy
Foreign Service Problems
Canadian Foreign Service Problems
Gifplomacy
Foreign Service Test
John Brown's Public Diplomacy Press and Blog Review
Life After Jerusalem
Mountainrunner
The Perlman Update
Sadie Abroad
The Skeptical Bureaucrat
the slow move east
Sunny in Kabul
The Text Message
Unaccompanied Baggage
Well That Was Different
WhirledView
AAFSW Blog List
AFSA Blog List
Blog Archive Select Month January 2021 (2) December 2020 (3) November 2020 (21) October 2020 (35) September 2020 (1) August 2020 (44) July 2020 (41) June 2020 (42) May 2020 (33) April 2020 (26) March 2020 (53) February 2020 (36) January 2020 (30) December 2019 (36) November 2019 (37) October 2019 (61) September 2019 (46) August 2019 (62) July 2019 (15) June 2019 (47) May 2019 (33) April 2019 (17) March 2019 (23) February 2019 (23) January 2019 (42) December 2018 (27) November 2018 (34) October 2018 (39) September 2018 (35) August 2018 (3) July 2018 (25) May 2018 (16) April 2018 (14) March 2018 (40) February 2018 (48) January 2018 (49) December 2017 (58) November 2017 (53) October 2017 (45) September 2017 (58) August 2017 (53) July 2017 (76) June 2017 (56) May 2017 (58) April 2017 (22) March 2017 (36) February 2017 (29) January 2017 (50) December 2016 (70) November 2016 (41) October 2016 (40) September 2016 (46) August 2016 (48) July 2016 (41) June 2016 (44) May 2016 (46) April 2016 (58) March 2016 (80) February 2016 (57) January 2016 (63) December 2015 (65) November 2015 (53) October 2015 (36) September 2015 (60) August 2015 (58) July 2015 (59) June 2015 (65) May 2015 (63) April 2015 (57) March 2015 (77) February 2015 (37) December 2014 (46) November 2014 (27) October 2014 (53) September 2014 (47) August 2014 (48) July 2014 (38) June 2014 (33) May 2014 (33) April 2014 (30) March 2014 (41) February 2014 (41) January 2014 (40) December 2013 (38) November 2013 (25) October 2013 (34) September 2013 (39) August 2013 (22) July 2013 (38) June 2013 (45) May 2013 (50) April 2013 (44) March 2013 (16) February 2013 (20) January 2013 (40) December 2012 (37) November 2012 (26) October 2012 (29) September 2012 (37) August 2012 (22) July 2012 (46) June 2012 (36) May 2012 (54) April 2012 (46) March 2012 (38) February 2012 (39) January 2012 (39) December 2011 (30) November 2011 (48) October 2011 (49) September 2011 (31) August 2011 (35) July 2011 (50) June 2011 (68) May 2011 (63) April 2011 (85) March 2011 (66) February 2011 (63) January 2011 (41) December 2010 (56) November 2010 (49) October 2010 (46) September 2010 (59) August 2010 (42) July 2010 (77) June 2010 (26) May 2010 (46) April 2010 (53) March 2010 (90) February 2010 (85) January 2010 (91) December 2009 (92) November 2009 (89) October 2009 (88) September 2009 (75) August 2009 (67) July 2009 (64) June 2009 (101) May 2009 (105) April 2009 (148) March 2009 (144) February 2009 (101) January 2009 (58) December 2008 (50) November 2008 (39) October 2008 (38) September 2008 (16) August 2008 (7) July 2008 (3) June 2008 (13) May 2008 (25) April 2008 (16) March 2008 (10)
FOIA'd, Washington, D.C.
Not Yet Jailed, Washington DC
Go Ahead Speak, I Won't Sit Up at Attention
Pardon Me, I'll Be As Quiet As a Mouse
Blog Tickler
© 2008-2019 diplopundit.net. Some Rights Reserved. No Claim to Original U.S. Government Works.


Journalist best known for his work as an anchor for Nightline and Good Morning as well as a correspondent for ABC News. In 2009, he won an Emmy for his child trafficking piece "How to Buy a Child in Ten Hours," which aired on Nightline.
He was born in Newton, Massachusetts and graduated from Colby College in 1993. His career as a news anchor began when he landed a job at the NBC affiliate WLBZ in Bangor, Maine.
His first book, 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Really Works — a True Story, was published in 2014.
He married Dr. Bianca Harris and has a son named Alexander, born in December 2014.
He and Juju Chang are both known for their appearances on Nightline.