Dianna Patricia Melrose
Biography
Dianna Melrose has been High Commissioner to the United Republic of Tanzania since February 2013. She is also the UK representative to the East African Community. Dianna was Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Cuba between 2008 and 2012. She joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in 1999 and has worked as Head of the FCO Policy Planning Staff and as Head of the South East Europe and European Union Enlargement department.
Dianna has extensive international development experience and a long standing interest in working closely with African partners to achieve positive change. She was seconded from FCO to the Department for International Development (DFID) to develop the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) from its beginning in 2002, building on her experience at FCO of working with governments, industry and NGOs to tackle the problem of conflict diamonds (the Kimberley Process). As Head of DFID’s International Trade department (2003-2006), her focus was improving the terms of trade for developing countries and developing the Aid for Trade initiative.
Before joining FCO she was Oxfam GB’s Policy Director and spent much of her career building Oxfam’s policy and international advocacy. She has written a number of books, including “Bitter Pills: Medicines and the Third World poor”. She has also worked for the British Council and in the private sector.
She has an MA in Latin American Studies and a BA in Spanish and French. Dianna has two sons, Tom (25) and Ben (22).
Previous roles in government
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British High Commissioner to Tanzania