Deepak Bhojwani
Ambassador Deepak Kishinchand Bhojwani joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1978 as a trained diplomat. He has served as ambassador in seven Latin American countries, being resident ambassador in Colombia (2007-2010), Venezuela (2003-2006) and Cuba (2010-2013), as well as serving as Consul General in São Paulo, Brazil (-2003). In 1994 he was picked by Indian Prime Minister Narasimha Rao to serve as his Private Secretary and served under the Prime Minister during India's economic reform period, where the country opened its economy to foreign Investors and relaxed regulation. The Ambassador has also served his country as a Diplomat in the Indian Embassies of Indonesia, Malaysia, Spain and the Czech Republic as a lower level functionary. Experience During his professional career, Ambassador Deepak Bhojwani has advised and guided several state-owned and private Indian companies looking to enter the Latin American Market. Such companies include ONGC Videsh Limited, Bajaj Auto and Praj Industries amongst others. In addition, he has worked alongside several Latin American leaders in areas ranging from bilateral co-operation to formation of foreign policy, such as Venezuela's Hugo Chávez, Ecuador's Rafael Correa, the Dominican Republic's Leonel Fernandez and Colombia's President Juan Manuel Santos. The Ambassador has played a vital role in strengthening the relationship between India and Latin America where he has served for over a decade, from 2000 till 2012. His experience in Latin America made him somewhat of an expert on the region within the Indian Foreign Service. He has worked extensively on projects of political, economic, commercial and social nature in Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Cuba, The Dominican Republic and Haiti in addition to collaborating on projects with other countries in and around the region. Among these was the opening of a Center for Information Technology in the Dominican Republic in 2011, financed by the Indian Government. Ambassador Bhojwani also served as a diplomat performing political, economic, commercial, cultural, consular, and administrative functions in Indian diplomatic Missions in Spain, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Czech Republic, before serving in Latin America, in the course of his career, from which he retired on 31 January 2012. He also represented his country and government on various delegations in multilateral and bilateral discussions, conferences, etc. He served in different capacities in New Delhi, the capital of India. His most distinguished designation was Private Secretary to the Prime Minister of India, Mr P.V.Narasimha Rao, from May 1994 till May 1996. Deepak Bhojwani was hand-picked by Prime Minister Rao for his diplomatic and political skills, to serve as a liaison with government departments and functionaries, to oversee appointments and schedules as well as important files relating to key decisions of the government of the day, to accompany the Prime Minister on visits abroad and during high level visits by international dignitaries and delegations to India. This provided an opportunity for him to interact with important personalities and put him at the heart on Indian diplomacy and decision making during the crucial period of India's economic reform and transformation into a global