H.E. Amb. Minata Samaté Cessouma is a native of Burkina Faso and a career diplomat who served as the African Union’s Commissioner for Health, Humanitarian Affairs, and Social Development from 2022 to 2025. She has extensive expertise in international relations and governance, which she applied to advance the African Union’s flagship programs, focusing on building efficient health systems and managing humanitarian affairs, population and migration policies.
From 2017 to 2021, she served as Commissioner for Political Affairs of the African Union, where she played a key role in preventing electoral crises, addressing humanitarian challenges, promoting good governance, the rule of law, and human rights across the continent. In these capacities, she championed social development through employment, culture, sport and the free movement of persons, ensuring that the needs of African citizens were at the forefront of policymaking.
Prior to her role as Commissioner, H.E. Samaté held several senior positions, including Diplomatic Advisor to the President of Burkina Faso and Deputy Minister in charge of Regional Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador of Burkina Faso to many African countries and Permanent Representative to the African Union and the United Nations institutions in Ethiopia and Kenya. With more than 30 years of experience in diplomacy, peace, and security, she has made significant contributions at the regional and international level, notably serving as Director of the United Nations–African Union Hybrid Mission in Darfur.
In November 2024, Ambassador Samaté Cessouma joined the Board of Directors of Nutrition International, bringing her deep commitment to improving health and nutrition outcomes worldwide. In June 2025, she was elected Chair of the Board of the African Leaders Malaria Alliance (ALMA), where she continues to leverage her diplomatic expertise to advance public health and accelerate progress in the fight against malaria across Africa.