Étienne, Count Davignon (born 4 October 1932 in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

) is a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

politician, businessman, and former vice-president of the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...

Career

After receiving a Doctorate of Law from the

Catholic University of Louvain The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, Davignon joined the Belgian Foreign Ministry, in 1959, and within two years had become an

attaché In diplomacy, an attaché is a person who is assigned ("to be attached") to the diplomatic or administrative staff of a higher placed person or another service or agency. Although a loanword from French, in English the word is not modified accord ...

under

Paul-Henri Spaak Paul-Henri Charles Spaak (; 25 January 1899 – 31 July 1972) was an influential Belgian Socialist politician, diplomat and statesman. Along with Robert Schuman, Alcide De Gasperi and Konrad Adenauer he was a leader in the formation of the ...

, then

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

. He remained in Belgian government until 1965. In 1970, he chaired the committee of experts which produced the

Davignon report The Davignon report, also referred to as the Luxembourg report, published on 27 October 1970, was a report on the future foreign policy of European Economic Community member nations. It was written by a council chaired by Étienne Davignon of the Be ...

on foreign policy for Europe. Davignon later became the first head of the International Energy Agency, from 1974 to 1977, before becoming a member of the European Commission, of which he was vice-president from 1981 until 1985. From 1989 to 2001, he was chairman of the Belgian bank

Société Générale de Belgique The ' ( nl, Generale Maatschappij van België; literally "General Company of Belgium") was a large Belgian bank and later holdings company which existed between 1822 and 2003. The ''Société générale'' was originally founded as an investm ...

, which is now part of the French supplier

Engie Engie SA is a French multinational utility company, headquartered in La Défense, Courbevoie, which operates in the fields of energy transition, electricity generation and distribution, natural gas, nuclear, renewable energy and petroleum. It ...

and was not an arm of the French bank

Société Générale Société Générale S.A. (), colloquially known in English as SocGen (), is a French-based multinational financial services company founded in 1864, registered in downtown Paris and headquartered nearby in La Défense. Société Générale ...

, but a Belgian institution. As of 2010 he was Vice Chairman of Suez subsidiary Suez-Tractebel. As chairman of Société Générale de Belgique, he was a member of the

European Round Table of Industrialists The European Round Table of Industrialists, abbreviated ERT, is an advocacy group in the European Union consisting of some 50 European industrial leaders working to strengthen competitiveness in Europe. The group works at both national and European ...

. He is the current co-chairman of the EU-Japan Business Dialogue Round Table, chairman of the Paul-Henri Spaak Foundation, president of the EGMONT – Royal Institute for International Relations, chairman of CSR Europe, chairman of the European Academy of Business in Society and was chairman of the annual Bilderberg conference from 1998 to 2001. He is a member of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group. Davignon is the chairman of the board of directors of Brussels Airlines, which he co-founded after the bankruptcy of

Sabena The ''Societé anonyme belge d'Exploitation de la Navigation aérienne'' (French; ), better known by the acronym Sabena or SABENA, was the national airline of Belgium from 1923 to 2001, with its base at Brussels National Airport. After its ba ...

. He is also a member of the board of numerous Belgian companies, and is the chairman of the board of directors and of the General Assembly of the

ICHEC Brussels Management School ICHEC Brussels Management School, officially Institut Catholique des Hautes Études Commerciales, is a Brussels-based management school, constituting the economic category of the "Haute École ICHEC - ECAM - ISFSC". It also has several trainin ...

. On 26 January 2004, Davignon was given the honorary title of ''Minister of State'', giving him a seat on the

Crown Council of Belgium The Crown Council of Belgium (french: Conseil de la Couronne, nl, Kroonraad) is composed of the King of the Belgians, the Ministers and the Ministers of State (mostly former ministers and other major politicians). The constitutional Monarch chai ...

. Created Count Davignon by King Philippe in 2018. Davignon is a crucial member of the Strategic Advisory Panel of The European Business Awards. He is a member of the Cercle Gaulois and a member of the advisory board of the

Itinera Institute The Itinera Institute is a Brussels-based independent think-tank that undertakes research that “identifies and promotes roads for policy reform towards sustained economic growth and social protection, for Belgium and its regions.” It was found ...

think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...

. He is also president of the

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

-based think tank

Friends of Europe Friends of Europe is a Brussels-based, not-for-profit think-tank for European Union policy analysis and debate. The organisation, established in 1999, has no political or national allegiance and is independent of the EU institutions. Its declared ...

Family

Davignon was the long-term partner of

Antoinette Spaak Antoinette Spaak (27 June 192828 August 2020) was a Belgian politician and leading figure within Francophone and regionalist politics in Brussels. She was born into a noted political family and entered politics as part of the regionalist Democra ...

, daughter of

, whom he had met while working as his

chef de cabinet In several French-speaking countries and international organisations, a (French; literally 'head of office') is a senior civil servant or official who acts as an aide or private secretary to a high-ranking government figure, typically a minist ...

. Étienne's grandfather,

Julien Davignon Henri François Julien Claude, viscount Davignon (3 December 1854 – 12 March 1916) was a Belgian politician who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs (1907–1916). Born in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, Davignon was a member of the Catholic Party. He ...

, also served in the government of Belgium, being Minister for Foreign Affairs in 1914, at the outbreak of World War I.

Honours

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...

, by Royal Decree. * Knight Grand Cross of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

. * Officer in the Order of the Crown. * Grand Officer of the Order of the Republic. * Grand Officer of the

Order of Saint Gregory the Great The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great ( la, Ordo Sancti Gregorii Magni; it, Ordine di San Gregorio Magno) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of ...

. * Grand Officer of the

Order of the Oak Crown The Order of the Oak Crown (french: Ordre de la Couronne de chêne, german: Eichenlaubkronenorden, lb, Eechelaafkrounenuerden) is an order of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. History The Order of the Oak Crown was established in 1841 by Gran ...

. * Grand Officer of the Order of the Dannebrog. * Grand Officer of the

Order of the Aztec Eagle The Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle ( es, Orden Mexicana del Águila Azteca) forms part of the Mexican Honours System and is the highest Mexican order awarded to foreigners in the country. History It was created by decree on December 29, 1933 ...

. * Knight Commander of the

Order of the Crown of Thailand The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand ( th, เครื่องราชอิสริยาภรณ์อันมีเกียรติยศยิ่งมงกุฎไทย; ) is a Thai order, established in 1869 by King Rama ...

. * Knight Commander of the

Order of Saint Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav ( no, Den Kongelige Norske Sankt Olavs Orden; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav I ...

. * Knight Commander of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

. * Knight Commander of the

Order of the Polar Star The Royal Order of the Polar Star ( Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the Seraphim. The Order of t ...

. * Knight Commander of the

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...

. * Officer of the Order of the Phoenix. * Officer of the

Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honour ...

References

External links

Curriculum vitae
at Corporate Europe Observatory
BBC interviewInterview
at the Historical Archives of the European Union in Florence , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Davignon, Etienne 1932 births Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968) alumni Belgian businesspeople Belgian European Commissioners Belgian Ministers of State Centre démocrate humaniste politicians Chairmen of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group Living people Members of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group Hungarian emigrants to Belgium Société Générale de Belgique Counts of Belgium European Commissioners 1977–1981 European Commissioners 1981–1985 Bessemer Gold Medal