Craig Hawke

Craig Hawke is a senior New Zealand diplomat with experience across foreign, trade and development policy. He is currently New Zealand’s Ambassador to Germany, Switzerland, the Czech Republic and Liechtenstein.

Prior to this appointment, Mr Hawke was New Zealand’s Permanent Representative and Ambassador to the United Nations, New York, 2017-2021. During his tenure, he served as Vice President on the UNICEF Board in 2021. His multilateral experience also includes a two-year appointment as United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP), Principal Adviser, Small Island Development States (SIDS), in New York, 2015-2016.

Before his UN assignment, Mr Hawke was Acting Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and prior to this, Deputy Secretary, International Development 2013-2014. In the latter role he was the Foreign Ministry’s chief adviser on Pacific and International Development Cooperation issues. He has held a variety of other roles within the Foreign Ministry including Chief Operating Officer - International Development, and he has headed the Multilateral and Humanitarian Division, and the Pacific Division at the Foreign Ministry. He has also worked on Africa, Asia, and environment issues during his career.

His other offshore assignments have primarily been in the Asia-Pacific region. He was New Zealand’s Deputy Ambassador in Samoa, 1998-2001, and First Secretary at New Zealand’s Embassy in the Republic of Korea, 1993-1996. He served in the New Zealand Trade Minister’s Office as Private Secretary from 1997-1998, and was seconded to the Australian Foreign Ministry in 1991 working on trade and Latin American issues.

Mr Hawke has a Master’s Degree in Social Sciences and Economics from the University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand.