The United States State Department has appointed a Kashmiri-origin woman as a special representative to Muslim communities as part of the Obama Administration's effort to reach out to the Muslims around the world.

State Department spokesman Ian Kelly told reporters that the appointment was made two days ago and in this capacity, Farah Pandith would advance US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's efforts to "engage with Muslims around the world on a people-to-people and organisational level".

Pandith was earlier a special adviser for outreach to Muslim communities.

"The secretary has appointed her to a more global role,"Kelly said.

Pandith immigrated to the US in 1969 with her parents from Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir.

The development came three weeks after President Barack Obama's historic speech in Egyptian capital Cairo to Muslims across the world.