Jenny Ohlsson (born 1975) is a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

who has been serving as State Secretary to the Minister for International Development Cooperation

Matilda Ernkrans Matilda Elisabeth Ernkrans (born 12 March 1973) is a Swedish politician of the Social Democratic Party. She served as Minister for International Development Cooperation from 2021 to 2022 and previously served as Minister for Higher Education a ...

in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Sweden) since November 2021. She was the first Swedish ambassador to

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

Early life and education

Ohlsson attended the

Pearson College UWC Lester B. Pearson United World College of the Pacific (also referred to as Pearson College UWC) is one of eighteen schools and colleges around the world in the United World Colleges movement, located on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. ...

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Gre ...

between 1992 and 1994 and studied at

Uppsala University Uppsala University (UU) () is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. Initially fou ...

from 1998 to 2007.

Career in diplomacy

Ohlsson joined the

Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

in 2002. Her assignments included working for the Africa Department, the Swedish embassy in

Pretoria Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria strad ...

and the Swedish office in

Kigali Kigali () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Rwanda. It is near the nation's geographic centre in a region of rolling hills, with a series of valleys and ridges joined by steep slopes. As a primate city, Kigali is a relativ ...

(from 2007 to 2009). Another assignment was working as counsellor in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Cabinet Office. On a diplomatic level the diplomatic contacts of Sweden to Rwanda were upheld through the embassies in

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

and

Kampala Kampala (, ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,875,834 (2024) and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kampala, Kawempe Division, Kawempe, Makindy ...

. The first Swedish representative in Rwanda in 1997 resided in a hotel room. The Swedish embassy in Kigali was opened in 2016. Jenny Ohlsson became the first Swedish ambassador to Rwanda residing in Kigali. Altogether with Aegis Trust, Sweden has decided to fully fund the Rwanda Peace Education in 2013. Karongi Peace School was launched in 2017. and Ohlsson stated in her speech that she is honored to be here and that very little work in Rwanda had focused directly on reducing the behavioral risks of Genocide such as healing the divisionism, trauma and prejudices that were contributing factor to, and consequence of the 1994 Genocide. As a spokesperson for Sweden feminist forum policy she added that women empowerment is important topic that leads to more peaceful society. In 2018, the Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD) has signed a $20 million guarantee agreement for lending to the renewable energy sector with the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA). During the event, Ohlsson stated how important it is to collaborate, in order to find innovative solutions and to reach the global goals for sustainable development. Ohlsson's time as ambassador in Kigali ended in 2019. She is succeeded by Johanna Teague.

Other activities

Asian Development Bank The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank to promote social and economic development in Asia. The bank is headquartered in Metro Manila, Philippines and maintains 31 field offices around the world. The bank was establishe ...

(ADB), Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (since 2022) *

Inter-American Development Bank The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB or IADB) is an international development finance institution headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States of America. It serves as one of the leading sources of development financing for the countri ...

(IDB), Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (since 2022)Board of Governors

(IDB).

References

External links

Jenny Ohlsson on regeringen.se
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ohlsson, Jenny 1975 births Living people Ambassadors of Sweden to Rwanda Ambassadors of Sweden to Eritrea Swedish women ambassadors Uppsala University alumni 21st-century Swedish diplomats People educated at a United World College