A welcome reception was hosted in honour of Australia’s new High Commissioner to Mauritius, HE Dr Kate O’Shaughnessy on 1 October in the presence of the President and the Prime Minister of Mauritius, HE Mr Prithvirajsing Roopun GCSK and the Hon. Pravind Jugnauth. They were joined by other partners from government and the diplomatic, private sector, NGO, Australian and alumni community.
Commenting on her new assignment, Australia’s High Commissioner to Mauritius, Dr O’Shaughnessy said: “It’s an exciting moment to be taking up this role, as Australia and Mauritius celebrate 50 years of bilateral relations. We have growing education and trade links, and collaboration in the Indian Ocean Rim Association, as well as in new fields including in the blue economy and women’s economic empowerment. In today’s challenging times, strong partnerships have never been more important. I’m looking forward to leveraging the strong people-to-people links between our two countries, and finding new avenues for cooperation, as partners in the Indian Ocean.”
HE Dr Kate O’Shaughnessy is Australia’s 17th High Commissioner to Mauritius and the 5th consecutive female High Commissioner. Dr O’Shaughnessy was accredited as Australia’s High Commissioner to Mauritius on 9 September 2020. She is a career officer with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and was most recently Deputy Director, at DFAT’s Western Australia State Office. She has previously served overseas in Ghana, and been deployed on short term assignments to Lebanon, Nigeria, Niger and France. Dr O’Shaughnessy holds a PhD and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from the University of Western Australia.
Australia and Mauritius formally established diplomatic relations 50 years ago, on 25 September 1970. The Australian High Commission in Port Louis was opened in March 1984. Special commemorative postage stamps and envelopes were launched by Australia Post and Mauritius Post on 25 September 2020 to commemorate the occasion.
1 October 2020