Erika Mouynes (born 24 November 1977) is a

Panamanian Panamanians (Spanish: ''Panameños'') are people identified with Panama, a transcontinental country in Central America (a region within North America) and South America, whose connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For mo ...

diplomat and lawyer. Mouynes held various senior roles in the government of Panama, including serving as the 62nd

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 ...

. She currently serves as the Chair of the Advisory Board for the

Atlantic Council The Atlantic Council is an American think tank in the field of international affairs, favoring Atlanticism, founded in 1961. It manages sixteen regional centers and functional programs related to international security and global economic prosp ...

-Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center. Mouynes is a fellow at the

Harvard University Advanced Leadership Initiative The Harvard University Advanced Leadership Initiative's goal is to assist experienced leaders who want to solve important social problems in the next stage of their professional lives. A key part of this assistance is providing an opportunity for t ...

. Her professional experience extends to the private sector, where she has worked as a senior attorney at the international law firm

Shearman & Sterling Shearman & Sterling LLP is a multinational law firm headquartered in New York City, United States. The firm's lawyers come from some 80 countries, speak more than 60 languages and practice US, English, EU, French, Spanish, German, Hong Kong, OHAD ...

LLP. She also held the position of Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel at Fintech Advisory, an investment company based on Wall Street.

Early life and education

Mouynes was born in Panama. She completed her undergraduate education in Panama, obtaining a Bachelor's degree in Law and Political Sciences from Santa Maria la Antigua Catholic University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from the Latin American University of Science and Technology, graduating ''magna cum laude'' from both institutions. Mouynes pursued further education in the United States as a

Fulbright The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

scholar and obtained a postgraduate Certificate in Business, a Master of Laws (LLM) in Corporate Law from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

, as well as a LLM in International Law from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

Career

Beginnings

Mouynes began her career practicing law in Panama and abroad. She was an attorney in project finance at the New York City office Shearman & Sterling law firm from 2007 to 2013. Subsequently, she served as Chief Legal Officer of the investment fund, Fintech from 2013 to 2017. In 2015, Mouynes received the

Association of Corporate Counsel The Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC), founded as the American Corporate Counsel Association (ACCA) in 1983, is a professional association serving the business interests of attorneys who practice in the legal departments of corporations, as ...

's Best Global General Counsel Award in 2015. In the Panamanian government, Mouynes was appointed Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Commerce and Industries in 2004 and Vice Minister of Multilateral Affairs and Cooperation in 2019. She played a role in negotiating the U.S.-Panama Free Trade Agreement and contributed to the development of Panama’s COVID-19 vaccine portfolio.

Minister of Foreign Affairs

Mouynes served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Panama from December 2020-October 2022. Appointed by then President

Laurentino Cortizo Laurentino "Nito" Cortizo Cohen (; born 30 January 1953) is a Panamanian politician who has served as the President of Panama since 2019. Cortizo is the former President of the National Assembly and Minister of Agricultural and Livestock Devel ...

on December 2, 2020, she succeeded Dr. Alejandro Ferrer. During her tenure at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mouynes addressed multiple global and regional issues, focusing on climate change, digital inclusion, irregular immigration, and gender inequality. She aimed to incorporate these topics into Panama's foreign policy and international discussions. Her diplomatic achievements include leading efforts to form the first-ever alliance of countries that are carbon negative and securing environmental protections for the Eastern Tropical Pacific Marine Corridor. Mouynes actively represented Panama in international forums such as the Forum of Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean on Sustainable Development 2022, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and the Smart Women, Smart Power Conversation at the

Center for Strategic and International Studies The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is an American think tank based in Washington, D.C. CSIS was founded as the Center for Strategic and International Studies of Georgetown University in 1962. The center conducts polic ...

, emphasizing the importance of sustainability and gender equality in solution building. She has been acknowledged for her role in promoting dialogues and convening conferences with high-ranking government officials and business leaders across the Western Hemisphere.

Current roles

Currently, Mouynes chairs the Board of the

-Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center and is a fellow at the

Selected publications

*Mouynes, Erika. ''In Search of Confidence to Govern''. UNO Magazine, July 2023 *Mouynes, Erika. ''No Puede Haber Democracia sin Confianza (“Mea Culpa”)'' (No Democracy without Trust). El Pais, September 2022 *Mouynes, Erika, and Meghan Lopez. ''Rethinking Migration in Latin America.'' Project Syndicate. February 2022 *Mouynes, Erika. ''Without Women Leaders, We Won’t Have The Bold and Concrete Climate Actions Our Planet Requires''. Ms. Magazine. December 2021 *Mouynes, Erika. ''The (Literal) Gap in U.S. Migration Policy''. Foreign Policy. June 2021

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mouynes, Erika Living people 1977 births Place of birth missing (living people) Government ministers of Panama Foreign ministers of Panama Female foreign ministers