Jan, Baron Grauls, born 12 February 1948, is a former Belgian diplomat.

Education

Jan Grauls studied

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

at the

University of Antwerp The University of Antwerp () is a major Belgian university located in the city of Antwerp. The official abbreviation is ''UAntwerp''. The University of Antwerp has about 20,000 students, which makes it the third-largest university in Flanders. ...

and at the

Catholic University of Leuven University of Leuven or University of Louvain (; ) may refer to: * Old University of Leuven (1425–1797) * State University of Leuven (1817–1835) * Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968) * Katholieke Universiteit Leuven or KU Leuven (1968 ...

Career

Jan Grauls joined EY as senior advisor on 1 April 2013. Before joining EY, he had been in the Belgian diplomatic service for more than forty years. His last assignment was Ambassador-Permanent Representative of Belgium to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

in New York. In that capacity, he served as a member of the

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...

(he held the office of president of the Security Council in August 2008). He was also Vice President of the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; , AGNU or AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as its main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ. Currently in its Seventy-ninth session of th ...

and of the

United Nations Economic and Social Council The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is one of six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields of the organization, specifically in regards to the fifteen specialized ...

(Ecosoc). During his tenure in New York, he served as first chairman of the United Nations

Peacebuilding Commission The United Nations Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) is a United Nations intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental advisory body of both the United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly and the United Nations Security Council, Security C ...

for the

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...

. From 2002 until 2008, Jan Grauls was Secretary General of the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation. Before occupying this position, he was chief of staff to the Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Director General for Bilateral and Economic Relations. From 1994 until 1997, Jan Grauls was deputy chief of staff and diplomatic advisor to HM the King. Jan Grauls served earlier in

Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...

Tunis Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...

, London,

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

and at the Belgian Permanent Representation to the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

. Since his retirement from the diplomatic service, baron Grauls became a member of the Board of the

Francqui Foundation The Francqui Foundation was founded in 1932 by Emile Francqui and Herbert Hoover in Belgium. The foundation is by Royal Decree an ''Institution of Public Utility''. The Francqui Foundation wants to encourage disinterested fundamental research. ...

, the

Europalia EUROPALIA (stylized in capital letters since 2025) is a Brussels-based, international biennial arts festival that highlights the cultural heritage and art scene of one invited country. On multiple occasions, the festival has also dedicated edition ...

International Arts Festival, the Belgo-British Conference and the Quartier des Arts Association (Brussels).

Personal life

Jan Grauls is married to Maria Gordts. They have four children, three daughters and one son.

References

1948 births Living people Permanent representatives of Belgium to the United Nations Permanent representatives of Belgium to the European Union {{Belgium-noble-stub