New Zealand Foreign Minister Vaovasamanaia Winston Peters has announced the appointment of career diplomat Dr Trevor Matheson as the new High Commissioner to Samoa, with accreditation to American Samoa.

In a statement released yesterday on the New Zealand government’s official website, Vaovasamanaia said the new High Commission was more than qualified and has over three decades of experience in the diplomatic service.

“As a long-serving diplomat, Dr Matheson is more than suitably qualified for his new role.

“Dr Matheson has more than three decades experience and is currently New Zealand’s Ambassador to the Republic of Indonesia. 

“He has previously served as Ambassador to Italy and Saudi Arabia, and Permanent Representative of New Zealand to the United Nations in Rome,” he said.

With over 144,000 Samoans currently living in New Zealand and close relations with Samoa since its independence in 1962, Vaovasamanaia said Dr Matheson will now oversee that relationship.

“More than 144,000 Samoans live in New Zealand, and their art, sport, language and politics make an important contribution to New Zealand and Dr Matheson will be responsible for continuing to uphold this long-standing relationship.”

A career diplomat, Dr Matheson has worked on a wide range of issues, from sustainable development in the Pacific to multilateral trade negotiations during his time in the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.  He has been a private secretary to various New Zealand ministers of trade and state, and earlier in his career had diplomatic postings in Geneva, Canberra and Rarotonga.

He was New Zealand Ambassador to Italy with cross accreditations to ten other Mediterranean and Balkan states, and concurrently Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other international agencies in Rome. 

From 2007 to 2010 he served as New Zealand Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia resident in Riyadh and non-resident ambassador to the Gulf Cooperation Council states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Dr Matheson is a social science graduate of the University of Waikato in New Zealand and holds a PhD in human geography from the Australian National University in Canberra.