5th November 2026
United Nations General Assembly: championing women and girls’ rights
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
1st October 2026
A Year Too Big for Two Suitcases: Notes From a Chevening Scholar
11th May 2026
The Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Bill: turning a global ocean agreement into UK law
21st November 2014 Mumbai, India
UK’s Chief Scientific Adviser Prof Robin Grimes visits India
Earlier this week, Prof. Robin Grimes, FCO’s Chief Scientific Adviser visited Mumbai. I accompanied him for meetings at the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), and finally, Larsen & Toubro (L&T). This is what he thought… My first meeting was with Dr. R K Sinha, […]
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20th November 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
World leaders linger in Australia
A number of the world leaders who came to Australia for the Brisbane G20 stayed on afterwards for formal Guest of Government visits, taking in several different states, including Tasmania. I suspect by the end of this week Australians, and particularly Canberrans, were getting pretty blasé about having Presidents and Prime Ministers in town. In the course […]
20th November 2014 Havana, Cuba
Diplomacy: time for a revolution?
A lot of people call me ‘Your Excellency’. Some do so nervously, clearly uncomfortable as they shake my hand, unsure how they should greet me. On one occasion a guest to a reception, perhaps confused by my regal bearing, even curtsied to me! All this comes with the job. And calling an ambassador ‘Your Excellency’ […]
20th November 2014 Brasilia, Brazil
The experience of being black in the UK and around the world
The First Secretary for Prosperity at the British Embassy in Brazil, NneNne Iwuji-eme, made a speech this week at the Fundação Escola de Sociologia in São Paulo during lectures about racial relations in Brazil and the UK. Since today is Black Awareness Day in Brazil, we would like to share her speech with you: The subject of […]
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20th November 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
With Caritas supporting child migrants
I was delighted this week to be able to have taken part in a podcast interview at Vatican Radio, organised by Caritas Internationalis, on child migrants. The occasion was the 25th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), an important international Convention that the United Kingdom signed in 1990 and […]
20th November 2014 London, UK
As G20 President, Turkey has an unparalleled opportunity
2015 will be a big year for the United Kingdom in Turkey. Our countries will stand together in Canakkale in April to mark the sacrifice our troops made when we were enemies on the battlefield one hundred years ago. As Allies today, our troops have served alongside each other in NATO missions around the world. […]
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19th November 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
THREE BISHOPS AND A PASTORAL FRATERNITY
Over the last few weeks I have been reminded of the significance of the churches in Turks and Caicos to so many people here. I had the good fortune to meet no less than three bishops – from the Church of God of Prophesy, Anglican and Catholic – who were visiting Grand Turk or Providenciales, […]
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19th November 2014 Singapore
2015-2016 Bidding Round: Key Dates
As we look ahead to the open call for bids on the 24th November 2014, I’d like to share with you the key dates for the diary for the 2015-2016 SE Asia Prosperity Fund. More information on the open call will go live on the GOV.UK website on the 24th November, including information on how to bid, submission […]
19th November 2014 Mumbai, India
Exploring UK-India collaborations in wave and tidal energy
In February this year, my colleague, Manjari, and I began deliberations to organise a 5-day UK-India programme on wave and tidal energy. Fast forward to 27-31 October 2014, those deliberations actually transpired! A delegation of six UK experts representing the member universities of the UK Centre for Marine Energy Research (UKCMER) as well as Scottish Association […]
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19th November 2014 Yerevan, Armenia
UNSCR 1325 in practice: Women in the military
One of the themes of this year’s NATO week was UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. On November 13 the MFA hosted a roundtable on Armenia’s approach to UNSCR 1325, with stakeholders from government (MFA, MOD, Ministry of Social Affairs, PM’s office), international organisations and NGOs. One of the themes of […]
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