Ambassador Jane Coombs took up her duties as Permanent Representative to the OECD on 6 September 2017.  Ambassador Coombs is also New Zealand’s Ambassador to France, Monaco, Portugal and Senegal.

Prior to taking up her duties in France, Ms. Coombs was based in Wellington, New Zealand. She was Director of the North Asia Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade from 2014-17 and Director of the Americas Division from 2012 to 2014. She has served as New Zealand’s Ambassador to Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and as Deputy Chief of Mission in Washington.

Ms. Coombs started her diplomatic career in New York, where she represented New Zealand from 1989-91 on the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly.  

From 1995-1998 she served as Deputy Head of Mission at the New Zealand Embassy in Moscow. She was the Economic Counsellor responsible for taking forward the Closer Economic Relationship (CER) between New Zealand and Australia.  

From 2003-05 Ms. Coombs was lead negotiator for New Zealand in relation to a number of environmental instruments in the field of biodiversity, biosafety, oceans and forests. Ms. Coombs has been an invited participant in the Asia Society’s Young Leader’s Asia 21 Summit, and undertook an executive education programme at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.

She is married to US-born Tim Strong, and they have one son, Connor.