Arlette Claudine Kpèdétin Dagnon Vignikin (born 17 November 1951) is an ambassador of

Benin Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...

. She has represented her country in the nations of Scandinavia and the Baltic.

Life

Vignikin was born in Benin in the city of

Ouidah Ouidah (English: ; French: ) or Whydah (; ''Ouidah'', ''Juida'', and ''Juda'' by the French; ''Ajudá'' by the Portuguese; and ''Fida'' by the Dutch), and known locally as Glexwe, formerly the chief port of the Kingdom of Whydah, is a city on t ...

in 1951. She was educated in international public law at ESCAE-University in Benin. She has a " Diplôme d'Etudes Supérieures Spécialisées (DESS)" in international law. She later studied French-Russian translation in Kyiv. She is a career diplomat. She was the first woman to be an ambassador of Benin and posted abroad. She is a

Plenipotentiary A ''plenipotentiary'' (from the Latin ''plenus'' "full" and ''potens'' "powerful") is a diplomat who has full powers—authorization to sign a treaty or convention on behalf of a sovereign. When used as a noun more generally, the word can als ...

Minister of Foreign Affairs. Before she became an ambassador, Vignikin held high responsibilities in the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

, as well as serving in Benin's Diplomatic missions abroad. She was: Head of the Department of America, Minister Counselor and Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of Benin in the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

and at the Benin's Embassy in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. In August 2008, she was appointed Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Republic of Benin to Denmark with jurisdiction over the other

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

n countries, the

Baltic countries The Baltic states or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term encompassing Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, and the OECD. The three sovereign states on the eastern co ...

and the Republic of

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

. On 12 February 2009 she was accredited to the Norwegian government in Oslo. On 30 April 2009 she was accredited to the

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

n government in

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

. She was accredited in

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

on 19 April 2011. Benin had diplomatic relations with Benin since 1997 but she was the first ambassador. She was later accredited in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

assisted by

Sven Hirdman Henrik ''Sven'' Hirdman (Swedish pronunciation: ẹn:rik sveːn hiːrdmaːn (born 28 September 1939), is a Swedish diplomat and ambassador. Early life Hirdman was born on 28 September 1939 in Stavanger, Norway, the son of Einar Hirdman (1916� ...

Private life

Vignikin is married and is the mother of three children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vignikin, Arlette Claudine Kpèdétin Dagnon 1951 births Living people People from Ouidah Beninese women diplomats Ambassadors of Benin to China Ambassadors of Benin to Denmark Ambassadors of Benin to Norway Ambassadors of Benin to Estonia Ambassadors of Benin to Latvia Ambassadors of Benin to Sweden Beninese translators Russian–French translators Beninese women ambassadors