Secretary and Deputy Secretaries
Mr Jamie Isbister is acting Deputy Secretary, Development, Multilateral and Europe Group (DMG) at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). Before this he was the Deputy Head, Office of the Pacific and the Head of the Strategic Infrastructure and Economic Division. In this role, Jamie was the infrastructure coordinator at DFAT, responsible for leading on infrastructure strategy and representing Australia at various international forums, including the Quad.
Jamie has over 25 years’ experience working in the humanitarian and development field, including previously serving as Australia’s Ambassador for the Environment and lead on Australia’s international climate negotiations. Jamie also served as the Australian Government’s Humanitarian Coordinator for 5 years, leading DFAT’s Humanitarian, NGOs and Partnerships Division. He has previously served overseas as Minister Counsellor Development for Africa based in Pretoria and was Assistant Director General for the Africa and Middle East Branch of AusAID.
Before entering Government, Jamie worked for a range of international development and human rights organisations including Amnesty International and the Caritas International network.
Jamie is also DFAT’s mental health champion.