Pakistan gets second woman Foreign Secretary as Amna Baloch takes charge

Islamabad, Sep 11 (IANS) Pakistan on Wednesday got its second woman Foreign Secretary as Amna Baloch took over the top diplomatic post.Becoming the 33rd Foreign Secretary, she succeeds Syrus Sajjad Qazi who stepped down after attaining superannuation, the Foreign Office said in a statement.A Grade-22 Foreign Service of Pakistan officer, Baloch was appointed as Foreign Secretary last week, the second woman to be appointed to the post after Tehmina Janjua, who held the post from 2017 to 2019.

A Masters in History, Baloch, 58, joined the foreign service in 1991 and has held several important assignments both in Islamabad and abroad including as the country's Consul General to Chengdu, China from 2014 to 2017 as well as stints in Denmark and Sri Lanka.She has also served as High Commissioner to Malaysia from 2019 to 2023 and prior to taking over as Foreign Secretary was the Ambassador to the European Union, Belgium and Luxembourg from 2023.Baloch has served as a Joint Secretary at the Prime Minister's Office and Additional Secretary in the Foreign Minister's office.She is married to Zulfiqar Ali Khan and the couple has two daughters.Syrus Sajjad Qazi, who stepped down on Tuesday after a 34-year diplomatic career, has also served at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi, besides other key posts.