Canada announced yesterday that Bruno Picard will be the next High Commissioner to Guyana, with concurrent accreditation as Ambassador to Suriname.

According to the Canadian government website, Picard (BSc, Université Laval, 1977) joined the Canadian Foreign Service in 1977 as a Trade Commissioner and has served abroad in Cairo, Guatemala City, Rabat and Brussels. In Ottawa, he undertook assignments in the Caribbean and Central America Trade Development Division, as Senior Departmental Assistant to the Secretary of State for International Trade, and in the Cabinet Liaison and Western Europe Divisions.

He was also Director of Communications in the Office of the Minister for International Trade. Since 1996, he has served as Director of the Centre for Professional Development of the Canadian Foreign Service Institute. He is married to Nicole Proulx and they have three children. Prior to his appointment Picard was Canada's first resident Ambassador to the Dominican Republic.