BERLIN, October 5, 2026 — The German government today announced  Ambassador Mark Green (ret.), President and CEO of The ONE Campaign, as a commissioner of the new South-North Commission on Development, co-chaired by former German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and former Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla. Building on the legacy of the Independent Commission on International Development Issues, chaired by former Chancellor and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Willy Brandt from 1977 to 1983, the commission brings together leaders from the Global South and North to develop joint solutions to pressing global issues, overcome polarization, strengthen multilateralism and foster new forms of international cooperation. Its work will also help shape a global development agenda beyond 2030. 

Green brings decades of experience in global development and diplomacy. He served as Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), U.S. Ambassador to Tanzania and, most recently, President of the Wilson Center in Washington, D.C. During four terms in the U.S. Congress, he played a leading role in crafting the bipartisan legislation that established PEPFAR, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, and the Millennium Challenge Corporation. He has also led the International Republican Institute. Having taught in Kenya, Green has a long-standing personal commitment to expanding opportunity across the African continent. 

“I am honored to join the South-North Commission and grateful to the German government for its foresight,” said Mark Green, CEO and President of ONE. “No country can solve today’s global challenges alone. As crises multiply, what unites us must count for more than what divides us. The world doesn’t need another report that looks good on paper and changes nothing. We are setting the bar high – solutions that genuinely improve people’s lives. Idealism sets the goal; pragmatism gets us there.”  

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Notes to the Editor: 

• More information on the South-North Commission for Development can be found here: https://www.bmz.de/en/issues/ensk 

• More information about Ambassador Mark Green can be found here: https://www.one.org/person/mark-andrew-green/  

ONE is a global, nonpartisan organization advocating for the investments needed to create economic opportunities and healthier lives in Africa. Since 2004, we have helped secure more than $1 trillion in new investments to build a safer, more prosperous world. Our trusted advocacy combines hard-hitting data, grassroots activism and political engagement to influence decision-makers and drive lasting change. Learn more at www.one.org. 

 
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 5, 2026  

Contact: Scherwin Saedi, [email protected]