Pullinen appointed as Inspector-General and Antila as Ambassador to Lusaka, Zambia

The President of the Republic appointed on 15 June the following persons:

Ambasador Matti Pullinen was appointed to serve as Inspector-General as from 10 September 2007.

Pullinen has served as Deputy Director General of the Department for the Americas and Asia since 2003.

Pullinen joined the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1973. From 2000 to 2003, he served as Ambassador in the Finnish Embassy in Jakarta, and from 1997 to 2000 in the Finnish Embassy in Abu Dhabi. His career in the Finnish diplomatic service includes also postings to the Finnish embassy in Tokyo, Beijing, Stockholm and Geneva. In the Ministry, Pullinen has served, among other things, as Deputy Director General and Director in the Department for External Economic Relations.

Counsellor for Foreign Affairs Sinikka Antila was appointed to serve as Head of Mission in the Finnish Embassy to Lusaka, Zambia, as from 1 September 2007.

Antila joined the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1984. She has held various development policy postings in the Ministry. Since 2003 until now, she has served as Director of the Unit for General Development Policy and Planning. From 1998 to 2003, Antila served as Counsellor for Development Policy and Chargé d'Affaires ad interim in the Finnish Embassy to Windhoek, RSA. From 1988 to 1991, she worked for the International Labour Organization, ILO, in the Ivory Coast. She has also worked as manager of the Canada Fund for Africa and as free lance consultant in Nigeria