Neil Douglas Walter (born 1942) is a New Zealand diplomat, and a former

Administrator Administrator or admin may refer to: Job roles Computing and internet * Database administrator, a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database * Forum administrator, one who oversees discussions on an Internet forum * N ...

Tokelau Tokelau (; ; known previously as the Union Islands, and, until 1976, known officially as the Tokelau Islands) is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, an ...

, a territory of

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. He served from February 1988 until 1990, and again from 1 March 2003 to 17 October 2006.

Biography

In his early career in the Foreign Service, Walter served in Thailand, New York, and Samoa. In 1981, Walter was posted to New Zealand's Embassy in Paris, where he was the New Zealand Permanent Representative to

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

. In 1985, Walter became New Zealand's deputy High Commissioner to London. Walter was New Zealand's Ambassador to Indonesia from 1990–1994, and served as New Zealand's Ambassador to Japan from 1997–1999. In 1999, Walter became Secretary of the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs, until his retirement from the diplomatic service in 2002. He was one of three people to address the

United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization The United Nations Special Committee on the Situation with Regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, or the Special Committee on Decolonization (C-24), is a committee of ...

, 10th Meeting, June 23, 2003. Walter was the chairman of the

Environmental Risk Management Authority The Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA; ) was a New Zealand government agency that controlled the introduction of hazardous substances and new organisms (invasive species and genetically modified organisms). It was disestablished on 3 ...

until 2008 and the chair of

NZ On Air NZ On Air (NZOA; ), formally the Broadcasting Commission, is an Crown entity, autonomous Crown entity and commission of the New Zealand Government responsible for providing funding for broadcasting and creative works. The commission operates l ...

until 2012. He also undertakes various reviews and assessments for the NZ Government. His 2009 report on the State Services Commission's ambitious and ill-fated GSN information technology project led to the resignation of the Deputy

State Services Commission The Public Service Commission (PSC; ), called the State Services Commission until 2020, is the central public service department of New Zealand charged with overseeing, managing, and improving the performance of the public sector organisations ...

er and Government CIO Laurence Millar.

Honours

In the 2002 Queen's Birthday and Golden Jubilee Honours, Walter was appointed a

Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit () is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ...

, for services as Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Personal life

He is married and has one son and two daughters. His son, Stephen Walter, is a lead negotiator on climate change for the New Zealand Ministry of Environment. His brother David Walter of Stratford is a former chairman of the

Taranaki Regional Council Taranaki is a regions of New Zealand, region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano Mount Taranaki, Taranaki Maunga, formerly known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the ...

and mayor of the

Stratford District Council Stratford District Council () is the territorial authority for the Stratford District of New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and ...

References

External links

Neil Walter biography at the Victoria University of Wellington
* SSC Inquir

1942 births Living people Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit Ambassadors of New Zealand to Japan Administrators of Tokelau Permanent delegates of New Zealand to UNESCO Ambassadors of New Zealand to Indonesia 20th-century New Zealand public servants New Zealand diplomats {{tokelau-politician-stub