Sir Don McKinnon

He was elected at the November 1999 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Durban, South Africa after a 21-year career in New Zealand politics.

After being elected to Parliament in 1978, Don McKinnon was New Zealand's longest serving Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade. He has held a number of senior posts within the government, including Deputy Prime Minister (1990 to 1996), Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade (1990-1999) and Leader of the House of Representatives (1992-1996).

He has also served as Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control, Minister of Veterans' Affairs, Associate Minister of Defence, Minister in Charge of War Pensions, and Minister of Pacific Island Affairs. Don McKinnon has previously held the positions of Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Expenditure and Control, and Chairman of the Parliamentary Subcommittee responsible for investigating State Sector spending and accountability. Mr McKinnon became a member of the Privy Council in 1992.

During his term as New Zealand Foreign Minister, Don McKinnon initiated a number of actions: he campaigned for and saw New Zealand elected to a two-year term on the United Nations Security Council. He promoted the deployment of New Zealand peacekeepers in a number of countries. He developed the Asia 2000 programme which eventually evolved into the Asia 2000 Foundation. He promoted the Centre for Strategic Studies based in Wellington. Mr McKinnon was also named 'Foreign Minister of the Year' by the World Economic Forum magazine.

Don McKinnon is widely credited with initiating and overseeing the brokering of a ceasefire between Bougainvilleans and the Papua New Guinea Government, leading to the signing of a peace agreement in 1997. He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for this work.

He was named New Zealander of the Year by the London-based New Zealand Society in 2003. He holds two honorary Matai (chiefly) titles from Samoa and has been awarded Honorary Doctorates from Lincoln University in New Zealand, the four Universities of Manchester, Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, University of Buea in Cameroon and University of Swaziland.

Don McKinnon in the Commonwealth

As Foreign Minister, Mr McKinnon developed close Commonwealth links, at both governmental and non-governmental levels. From its inception in 1995 until his election as Secretary-General, he served as the Deputy Chairperson of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group on the Harare Declaration (CMAG). He chaired the Commonwealth Small States Meeting at the Auckland CHOGM in 1995 and he was appointed to the eight-member Commonwealth Ministerial Mission on Small States in 1998.

Commonwealth Secretary-General

As Commonwealth Secretary-General, Don McKinnon's achievements included:

• Modernising the Commonwealth Secretariat's structure and internal organisation.
• Enhancing the profile of the Commonwealth and ensuring that its work is better known by the general public.
• Building strategic partnerships with other international organisations, as well as synergies with civil society, in pursuit of the values and objectives of the Commonwealth.
• Putting young people at the heart of the Commonwealth's work, promoting youth programmes, particularly in relation to HIV/AIDS.
• Defending the rights of small states, ensuring that their special vulnerabilities are recognised and their interests promoted on the international agenda.
• Strengthening the work of the Commonwealth in promoting democratic practices, good governance and respect for human rights.
• Promoting the establishment of a fair, rules-based multilateral trading system, ensuring that developing countries' interests are duly reflected in international trade talks.
• Making a strong stand on the need for developed countries to reduce agricultural subsidies, giving developing countries a fair chance to trade their way out of poverty.

His final day in office was 31 March 2008.