Baroness Amos

Baroness Amos, "European Union special representative to the african union

"In 2003 Valerie Amos became the first black woman in a British Cabinet as Secretary of State for International Development. She later became the Leader of the House of Lords, the third woman in history to lead the upper house of Parliament.

"Prior to her appointment as Secretary of State for International Development, Baroness Amos was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs in June 2001 with responsibility for Africa, the Commonwealth, the Caribbean, Overseas Territories, Consular Issues and FCO Personnel.

"Previously she was the Government Whip from 1998 to 2001 and a co-opted member, European Union Sub-committee F (Social Affairs, Education and Home Affairs) from 1997-98.

"She was spokesperson for social security 1998-2001, international development since 1998, women's issues 1998-2001, and foreign and commonwealth office 2001

"Valerie Amos has a particular interest in development issues, human rights and equality."

Affiliations

 * Chair, Inter-Agency Standing Committee
 * Judge, Asian Women of Achievement Awards
 * Patron, Windsor Leadership Trust
 * Patron, Women and Children First
 * Patron, Runnymede Trust

Articles

 * Valerie Amos and Pratibha Parmar, “Challenging Imperial Feminism,” Feminist Review, 17 (Autumn, 1984), pp. 3-19.