Berenice Owen-Jones

Berenice Owen-Jones, is a senior career officer with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), who is currently Australian High Commissioner to Ghana since July 2022.

Official portrait as High Commissioner to Ghana.

Diplomatic career

Owen-Jones earned a Bachelor of Economics, and a Diploma of International Law, from the Australian National University in 1987 and 1988, respectively.[1]

Owen-Jones joined the public service in 1988, and has served in the Department of Trade, the Office of National Assessments, and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. From 1999 to 2001, she was First Secretary at the Australian Embassy in Paris, and was a ministerial speechwriter for the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer and then Stephen Smith, from 2006 to 2008. In 2016-2017, she was Director of Studies of the Diplomatic Academy.[1]

In June 2017, Owen-Jones was appointed as the first resident Australian Ambassador to Morocco, tasked with establishing the new embassy.[2][3][4][5] Serving as ambassador until October 2020, Owen-Jones was awarded the rank of Commander of the Order of Ouissam Alaouite by King Mohammed VI of Morocco, being presented with the award by the Moroccan ambassador to Australia, Karim Medrek, on 22 February 2021.[6][7]

On 6 July 2022, she was appointed Australian High Commissioner to Ghana, with non-resident accreditation for Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.[8] She presented her letters of commission to the President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, on 27 September 2022.[9]

References
  1. "Ambassador to Morocco". DFAT. Archived from the original on 27 June 2018. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  2. Bishop, Julie (12 May 2017). "Ambassador to Morocco". Minister for Foreign Affairs. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Archived from the original (Media Release) on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  3. Wang, Isabella (30 September 2018). "Ambassador Owen-Jones: Pioneer of Australian-Moroccan Relations". Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  4. "APPOINTMENT OF AUSTRALIA'S FIRST RESIDENT AMBASSADOR TO THE KINGDOM OF MOROCCO". Embassy of Morocco Australia-New zealand-Pacific States. Archived from the original on 14 April 2020. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  5. "Ambassador Owen-Jones: Pioneer of Australian-Moroccan Relations". Morocco World News. 30 September 2018. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  6. "L'ex-ambassadrice d'Australie au Maroc décorée du Wissam Alaouite de l'ordre de commandeur" (in French). Le Matin. 23 February 2021. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  7. "L'ex-ambassadeur d'Australie au Maroc décorée du Wissam Alaouite de l'ordre de commandeur" (in French). Le Reporter.ma. 23 February 2021. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  8. Wong, Penny (6 July 2022). "High Commissioner to Ghana" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 29 October 2022.
  9. "President Akufo-Addo Receives Credentials Of Four Envoys" (Media Release). Office of the President, Republic of Ghana. 27 September 2022. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
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