Elisenda Vives Balmaña is an

Andorra Andorra, officially the Principality of Andorra, is a Sovereignty, sovereign landlocked country on the Iberian Peninsula, in the eastern Pyrenees in Southwestern Europe, Andorra–France border, bordered by France to the north and Spain to A ...

n diplomat who has served as the country's Permanent Representative to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

since November 2015. She is also Andorra's ambassador to the United States, Canada and Mexico, and former ambassador to Morocco and Italy.

Early life and education

Vives was born in

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. Vives has a degree in philosophy and letters from the

Autonomous University of Barcelona The Autonomous University of Barcelona (; Spanish: ; ; UAB) is a public university mostly located in Cerdanyola del Vallès, near the city of Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain. , the university consists of 57 departments in the experimental, lif ...

, a master's degrees in gender studies from the

University of Barcelona The University of Barcelona (official name in ; UB), formerly also known as Central University of Barcelona (), is a public research university located in the city of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was established in 1450. With 76,000 students, ...

, a master's degree in Eastern Asian studies and a postgraduate degree in comparative politics from the

Open University of Catalonia The Open University of Catalonia (; ) is a private Open supported learning, open university based in Barcelona, Spain. The UOC offers graduate and postgraduate programs in Catalan language, Catalan, Spanish language, Spanish and English languag ...

, a postgraduate degree in Andorran law from the

Universitat d'Andorra The University of Andorra (; ) is a public institution of higher education created in 1988, and the first university in Andorra. The university consists of the College of Health and Education Sciences, the College of Business and Technology, and ...

and a doctorate in history from the Autonomous University of Barcelona.

Career

Vives was a professor of geography and history before working for the principality's Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1992 until 2001. She was

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 so ...

of Andorra to

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

from 2000 until 2001. Vives was Head of Protocol and Administrative Affairs of the General Council from 2001 until 2015. She was President of the Andorran National Commission for

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

from 2012 until 2015. Vives was appointed Andorra's Permanent Representative to the UN by

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Antoni Martí Antoni Martí Petit (; 30 July 1963 – 6 November 2023) was an Andorran architect and politician who served as the prime minister of Andorra between 2011 and 2019, when he was elected on the ticket of the Democrats for Andorra. Previously, ...

on 3 November 2015. On 2 March 2016 she was also appointed as Andorra's ambassador to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. On 30 November 2016, Vives and her

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

n counterpart A. Rohan Perera signed a joint communique establishing

diplomatic relations Diplomacy is the communication by representatives of state, intergovernmental, or non-governmental institutions intended to influence events in the international system.Ronald Peter Barston, ''Modern Diplomacy'', Pearson Education, 2006, p. ...

between the two countries.

Personal life

Vives is married and speaks four languages - Catalan, Spanish, French and English.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vives Balmana, Elisenda Living people People from Barcelona Andorran people of Catalan descent Autonomous University of Barcelona alumni University of Barcelona alumni Andorran women ambassadors Permanent representatives of Andorra to the United Nations Ambassadors of Andorra to Canada Ambassadors of Andorra to Italy Ambassadors of Andorra to Mexico Ambassadors of Andorra to Morocco Ambassadors of Andorra to the United States Year of birth missing (living people)