International trade and development specialist Amanda Ellis (50) will start her two-year secondment at the end of this month.
''I am delighted Ms Ellis is going to lead New Zealand's team in Geneva to further enhance our relationship with the UN and other specialised agencies based there,'' Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully said, announcing the appointment.
The former Columba College and Bayfield High School pupil graduated from the University of Otago in 1984 in economics and French, before joining the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in 1988.
Since then, she has worked at the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation and most recently at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Ms Ellis has long championed women's economic empowerment and has written two best-selling books; Women's Business, Women's Wealth: Create the Life You Want at Work and in Business and Woman 2 Woman: New Zealand women share their experiences of career and business.
