Ellington Arnold
- Manager, U.S.-Africa Business Center, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Ellington Arnold, manager of U.S.-Africa Business Center (USAfBC) at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, where he advances international policy, trade, and commercial growth across the Center’s East and Southern Africa portfolio. He brings a decade of international business development and public policy experience to the role, with a focus on strengthening U.S.-Africa commercial ties, building resilient supply chains, and expanding private-sector engagement across key sectors.
Arnold leads the Africa Critical Minerals Working Group, the Chamber’s private-sector platform focused on strengthening U.S.-Africa critical mineral partnerships and advancing secure, resilient, and market-driven mineral supply chains. In this role, he helps convene business and government leaders, supports policy development, and works to align U.S. policy tools with African industrialization and commercial growth priorities.
He also leads the Life Science Task Force, which advocates for greater investment in the health and wellness sectors to support development and meet the growing pharmaceutical and health care needs of African nations. Through this work, Arnold fosters dialogue among public- and private-sector partners, advances regulatory cooperation, and supports policies that improve health outcomes and expand access across African markets.
Before joining the Chamber, Arnold served in politics and held positions that enabled him to gain a deep understanding of the African business landscape. He served as country desk officer for South Africa, Eswatini, and Lesotho while at the Peace Corps, where he provided critical support to volunteers and managed relationships with government officials and other stakeholders. He also worked as the entrepreneurship officer at the U.S. African Development Foundation, where he oversaw the agency’s entrepreneurship portfolio and supported African entrepreneurs and economic growth across Sub-Saharan Africa.
Additionally, Arnold consulted in Kenya on grassroots health and economic inclusion projects and was a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal at a rural health clinic.
He is a graduate of the University of Virginia, where he majored in foreign affairs with a concentration on Africa.
