Since July 2013, Mr. El-Lissy has served as the Deputy Administrator for the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services’ Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ). In this position, he leads and directs a nationally dispersed staff that safeguards U.S. animal and plant resources from destructive pests and diseases and facilitate the global trade of U.S. agricultural products. For nearly two years before becoming PPQ’s Deputy Administrator, Mr. El-Lissy was the Associate Deputy Administrator responsible for policy and financial management within PPQ. Before that, he directed PPQ’s emergency management, providing national coordination in the preparedness, response, and recovery from plant health emergencies in the United States. This included working with federal and state governments, industry stakeholders, and subject matter experts to develop and implement comprehensive plans designed to safeguard American agriculture against invasive pest outbreaks. From 2000 to 2005, Mr. El-Lissy served as the APHIS National Coordinator for cotton pest programs. In that role, he provided the coordination for national cotton pest programs in the United States and Mexico, including the boll weevil and pink bollworm eradication programs. Mr. El-Lissy’s previous experience includes more than twelve years in the private sector managing large scale pest control and eradication programs. As the director of the Texas boll weevil eradication program from 1994 through 2000, Mr. El-Lissy led one of the largest pest eradication programs in the world, affecting approximately four million acres of cotton and providing services to several thousand cotton producers and landowners. Mr. El-Lissy earned a master’s degree in international business administration from Georgetown University, a master’s degree in public administration from American University, and a bachelor of science in agriculture production and entomology from Cairo University.