Herman Jay Cohen
Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs
In office May 12, 1989 – February 26, 1993[1]
President	George H. W. Bush
Preceded by	Chester Crocker
Succeeded by	George Moose
United States Ambassador to the Gambia
In office June 24, 1977 – July 21, 1980
President	Jimmy Carter
Preceded by	O. Rudolph Aggrey
Succeeded by	Larry Gordon Piper
Personal details
Born	(1932-02-10) February 10, 1932 (age 92) New York City, New York, U.S.
Alma mater	City College of New York[2]
Awards	Légion d’Honneur Order of Leopold II, Belgium [3]
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Army

Herman Jay "Hank" Cohen (born February 10, 1932) is an American diplomat who served as United States Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs from 1989 to 1993.

Career

Herman Jay Cohen, born in New York City on February 10, 1932, received a BA in political science from the City College of New York in 1953. He then joined the United States Army, serving until 1955. He received an MA in international relations from American University in 1962. He served in the Foreign Service as a consular officer, attaché, and political counselor until his appointment to the post of United States Ambassador to Gambia and Senegal in 1977, serving until 1980. He later served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research from 1980-1984, a Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Africa on the U.S. National Security Council from 1987-1989, and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs from 1989-1993.^[2]

After leaving government, Cohen served as a senior advisor to the Global Coalition for Africa before becoming a professorial lecturer at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies for twelve years. Currently he is president and CEO of Cohen and Woods International. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Hyperdynamics Oil and Gas and as a consultant for ContourGlobal.^[4]