Benita Ferrero - Waldner

Benita Ferrero-Waldner has served as the European commissioner for external relations and European neighbourhood policy since 2004. As commissioner, Ms Ferrero-Waldner co-ordinates the external relations activities of the European Commission, acting as its interface with the EU’s general affairs and external relations council (GAERC). She also ensures that the Commission has a clear identity and a coherent approach in its external activities. Ms Ferrero-Waldner was born in 1948 in Salzburg, Austria, and received her doctorate in law from the University of Salzburg. Prior to her current position, Ms Ferrero-Waldner served as Austria’s federal minister for foreign affairs and state secretary of foreign affairs. Between 1993 and 1995 she served as deputy chief of protocol at the federal ministry for foreign affairs, then chief of protocol at the executive office of the secretary general, United Nations secretariat, New York. Ms Ferrero-Waldner has held a number of positions in Austrian embassies, including first secretary in the Austrian embassy in Dakar, Senegal, and counsellor for economic affairs at the Austrian embassy in Paris. Before entering the diplomatic service, Ms Ferrero-Waldner worked in the private sector and held a number of management positions in Europe and the United States.