MFA Press Statement: Presentation of Credentials Ceremony, 30 March 2017

Photo Credit: MCI

Photo Credit: MCI

        The following foreign Heads of Mission presented their credentials to President Dr Tony Tan Keng Yam in separate ceremonies at the Istana today:

        (a)     The Ambassador of Mexico

                 His Excellency Nathan Wolf Lustbader

        (b)     The Ambassador of Maldives

                 His Excellency Hamdun Abdulla Hameed

        Their bio summaries are appended.   

.    .    .    .     .

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

SINGAPORE 

30 MARCH 2017

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NATHAN WOLF LUSTBADER

AMBASSADOR TO SINGAPORE

UNITED MEXICAN STATES

        Ambassador Nathan Wolf has had a career spanning more than 20 years with international expertise in diverse geo-cultural environments.  He has held various positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico, including Director General of Cooperation and International Economic Promotion.  He has also served in Montevideo, Uruguay; and Washington DC, and as the first Consul of Mexico in Minnesota in the US.  Ambassador Wolf was Diplomatic Advisor to former Mexican President Vicente Fox.  In the private sector, Ambassador Wolf worked with Grupo Salinas, one Mexico’s largest business conglomerates.

        Ambassador Wolf holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing from the Monterrey Institute of Technological and Higher Education and did his postgraduate studies in International Relations in American University (Washington DC). He speaks Spanish, English, and Hebrew. He has been awarded the Order of Civil Merit (Silver Cross) by the Government of the Kingdom of Spain; The Royal Order of the Polar Star (Officer) by the Government of the Kingdom of Sweden; and several awards from the authorities of the US State of Minnesota.

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HAMDUN ABDULLA HAMEED

AMBASSADOR TO SINGAPORE

REPUBLIC OF MALDIVES

        A graduate in economics, Hameed had a distinguished public service career of 27 years including a stint as the Maldives’ Minister for Planning and National Development from 2003 to 2008.  Hameed was also the deputy leader of the opposition during his five-year term as a Member of Parliament, before joining the private sector in mid-2014.

        During his time in government, Hameed has spearheaded several development initiatives, strategic and national development plans and public sector investment programmes.  He headed the Maldives’ Vision 2020 Task Force, and post-tsunami housing and infrastructure reconstruction programme.  He was also a key strategist in the compilation of the presidential manifestos of 2008 and 2013.

        Hameed is also active in civil society and community service, and has headed a community school for over two decades.  He is a founding member of BEAM, a biodiversity awareness NGO which works towards environmental protection of the oceans. 

        A long serving member of the National Lexical Committee, he is an award-winning poet and lyricist, and is a pioneer member of a cultural drummer family. He is married to Aishath Ali, and has two sons Yethrib and Zanaain.