Ellen Margrethe Løj (born 17 October 1948 in Gedesby,

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

) is a Danish

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

. Between 2014 and 2016, she served as the Special Representative and Head of the

United Nations Mission in South Sudan The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) is a United Nations peacekeeping mission for South Sudan, which became independent on 9 July 2011. UNMISS was established on 8 July 2011 by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1996 (201 ...

(

UNMISS The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) is a United Nations peacekeeping mission for South Sudan, which became independent on 9 July 2011. UNMISS was established on 8 July 2011 by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1996 (2011 ...

). Prior to this appointment of July 2014 by

United Nations Secretary-General The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. The role of the secretary-ge ...

Ban Ki-moon Ban Ki-moon (; ; born 13 June 1944) is a South Korean politician and diplomat who served as the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations between 2007 and 2016. Prior to his appointment as secretary-general, Ban was his country's Minister ...

, Ellen Margrethe Løj served as the

Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...

to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

for Denmark from 2001 until 2007.

Education

Løj has a master's degree in

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

from

Copenhagen University The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public research university in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia after Uppsala Unive ...

Career

Løj began her diplomatic career in the Danish Foreign Ministry in 1973. From 1977 to 1980 she served as First Secretary of the Danish Permanent Mission to the UN in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

From 1982 to 1985 she served as Counsellor within 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 ...

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 ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. From 1986 to 1989 she was Head of Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 1989, Løj was appointed Ambassador to

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, and served in that position until 1992 when she returned to the Foreign Ministry to serve as an Under Secretary and then State Secretary of the South Group. In 2001, she was appointed Ambassador to the United Nations. Løj served as Denmark's ambassador to the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

before she was appointed by the

as Special Representative for

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

in October 2007. During her time in office, she was also a member of Prime Minister

Anders Fogh Rasmussen Anders Fogh Rasmussen (; born 26 January 1953) is a Danish politician who was the 24th Prime Minister of Denmark from November 2001 to April 2009 and the 12th Secretary General of NATO from August 2009 to October 2014. He became CEO of politi ...

’s Commission on Effective Development Cooperation with Africa which held meetings between April and October 2008.

Other activities

In addition to her appointments Løj has also been on the supervisory board of the Danish-German ferry company

Scandlines Scandlines is a ferry company that operates the Rødby–Puttgarden and Gedser–Rostock ferry routes between Denmark and Germany. Scandlines owns 7 ferries, 6 of which are hybrid ferries, making Scandlines the owner of the world's largest fl ...

since 1998 and a member of the advisory boards of the Industrialization Fund for Developing Countries and the Investment Fund for Central and Eastern Europe. Between June 2012 and 2014, Løj served as a volunteer Member of the Board of the

Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue The Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD), otherwise known as the Henry Dunant Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, works to prevent and resolve armed conflicts around the world through mediation and discreet diplomacy. A non-profit organisation bas ...

, a private diplomacy organization whose mission is to prevent armed conflict through dialogue and mediation.

References

United Nations Press Release: Ellen Margrethe Løj - July 2014
* ttp://www.globalpolicy.org/security/membship/profiles/denmark.htm Profile of Ambassador Ellen Margrethe Løj 1948 births Living people University of Copenhagen alumni Danish women diplomats Danish officials of the United Nations Ambassadors of Denmark to Israel Ambassadors of Denmark to the Czech Republic Permanent Representatives of Denmark to the United Nations Danish women ambassadors {{UN-bio-stub