Presentation of Credentials Ceremony, 29 April 2025

The following foreign Heads of Mission presented their credentials to President Tharman Shanmugaratnam in separate ceremonies at the Istana today:

(a)         The Ambassador of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic

His Excellency Vilatsone Visonnavong

(b)        The High Commissioner of the Republic of Sierra Leone

His Excellency Dr. Abu Bakarr Karim

(c)         The Ambassador of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal

His Excellency Dhan Bahadur Oli

Their bio summaries are attached.

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MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

SINGAPORE

29 APRIL 2025

HIS EXCELLENCY VILATSONE VISONNAVONG

AMBASSADOR TO SINGAPORE
LAO PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC

Prior to his appointment to Singapore, Ambassador Visonnavong had been serving as Director-General of the Diplomatic Service Bureau at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR) since 2023. He also served as Deputy Director-General of the Department of International Organizations at the Ministry from 2020 to 2023, and First Secretary and Third Secretary at the Permanent Mission of the Lao PDR to the United Nations in New York from 2016 to 2019 and 2008 to 2011, respectively.

Ambassador Visonnavong has held various posts at the Department of International Organisations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 2000. These include Director of the Research, Coordination and Statistics Division from 2019 to 2020, Director of International Non-Governmental Organizations Division from 2015 to 2016, and Deputy Director of United Nations Political and Security Affairs Division from 2012 to 2015. Ambassador Visonnavong has a Master of Arts in International Relations from Flinders University, South Australia, Australia; and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.

Ambassador Visonnavong was born on 8 October 1973 in Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR, and is married with a son and daughter.

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HIS EXCELLENCY ABU BAKARR KARIM
HIGH COMMISSIONER TO SINGAPORE
REPUBLIC OF SIERRA LEONE

High Commissioner Dr Abu Bakarr Karim has been Sierra Leone’s Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China since January 2024. Apart from Singapore, he is concurrently accredited to Sri Lanka and New Zealand. Prior to his current appointment, he was Presidential Adviser on Trade and Investment (2018), Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security (2019), and Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security (2021).

High Commissioner Karim graduated from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Diseases. He holds a degree in Clinical Trials Research, Intensive and Critical Care. He was a healthcare practitioner in Tropical Disease and Nursing, and specialised in Intensive Care Medicine before joining the public sector.

High Commissioner Karim is married with four children. He has a keen interest in football.

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HIS EXCELLENCY DHAN BAHADUR OLI
AMBASSADOR TO SINGAPORE
FEDERAL DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF NEPAL

Ambassador Dhan Bahadur Oli is a career diplomat with 27 years’ experience. Ambassador Oli took up post as Ambassador of Nepal to the Kingdom of Thailand in June 2024 and holds concurrent accreditation to Cambodia and Lao PDR. He is also Ambassador-designate of Nepal to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Prior to this, Ambassador Oli served as Joint Secretary of the Regional Organizations Affairs Division and Director General of the Department of Consular Services at Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2020 to 2023.

Before that, Ambassador Oli held various positions, including Chargé d'Affaires a.i. and Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of Nepal in Dhaka, Regional Director at the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation Secretariat, and First Secretary at the Embassy of Nepal in New Delhi. Ambassador Oli holds a Master's degree in Public Administration and a Master's degree in Business Administration from Tribhuvan University, Nepal.

He is married to Mina Oli, with one daughter.