AUBURN – Pamela Ann White, daughter of Richard and Muriel Murphy of Auburn, was honored by the government of Mali in West Africa recently. She served in Mali from 2001 to 2005 as a State Department foreign service officer.

White, who was director of the $40 million a year United States AID program in Mali, was decorated by the Malian government with the “Knight of the National Order of Merit,” one of the highest awards ever given to an American.

She was the 143rd person of any nationality to receive the award since its inception in 1961. President Jimmy Carter is the only other American to receive the award.

White’s leadership is credited with realizing significant improvements in the lives of Malian citizens. During her tenure, the number of girls in primary education tripled in the north of Mali, the number of elected women leaders increased 200 percent, the rate of vaccination for young children went from 32 percent to 67 percent and the number of women with access to some means of finance for small projects exceeded 10,000.

In the last year, a $1 million canal was built that will bring food and incomes to 20,000 Malian farmers.

The American Ambassador to Mali commented, “Pam is truly one of the most competent and professional individuals I have ever known. She is equally at ease talking to farmers or high government officials. Her profound knowledge of people and their needs makes her the most effective mission director I have ever encountered in my 28 years in the Foreign Service.”

The President of Mali said, “Pam White has all the qualities that we most admire in Americans: passion, intelligence, a love for all people. She has made a huge difference to all Malian and, for this, she has my nation’s profound thanks.”

White graduated from Edward Little High School in 1967 and from the University of Maine in 1971. She began her career as a Peace Corps volunteer in Cameroon, Africa, in 1971 and has served in seven foreign countries since that time.

She has graduate degrees from the School for International Training in Brattleboro, Vt., and from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces in Washington, D.C. She was married to Dr. Michael White from 1973 to 1993 when he died.

She is married to Steven Cowper, also a foreign service officer. She has two sons, Kristopher and Patrick, both graduates of George Washington University. White is serving in Tanzania, Africa, as the mission director for the United States Agency for International Development. She is presently hosting First Lady Laura Bush in Tanzania.