H.E Fiona-Jayne Formosa has been appointed the new Ambassador of Malta to Ireland, having assumed the role in March 2025, taking over from the previous Ambassador H.E Giovanni Buttigieg.
Ms Formosa has previously worked on various different assignments at the Malta Ministry in Bilateral Relations, Global Issues and European Affairs Departments and Malta’s Consul General in Toronto, Canada. From 2012 to 2024, she was promoted to different roles including Director European Affairs, International Development and European Institutions (2012-2014), Permanent Secretary (2014-2020) and most recently Director-General Political, External Relations and European Affairs/Political Director (2020-2024). Her first Ambassadorial assignment was to Turkey as a non-resident Ambassador from 2014 to 2017.
Ms Formosa graduated from the University of Malta with a Bachelors (Honours) degree in International Relations in 1996 and subsequently joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in September of that year. Her first assignment was as a Second Secretary within the Multilateral Affairs Department. Three years later she read for a Masters’ degree in Diplomacy at the Mediterranean Academy of Diplomatic Studies at the University of Malta, and upon completion, moved on her first posting to the Embassy of Malta in Athens in 2000. Ms Formosa studied Italian, French and German, has a basic knowledge of Greek and is married with two children.
Speaking about her appointment, Ms Formosa said: “I am really excited to be appointed the new Malta Ambassador to Ireland. Malta and Ireland have always enjoyed a close relationship and I look forward to continuing the close ties between our two countries. Malta is also a very popular destination for Irish travellers and I am looking forward to working closely with Visit Malta on showcasing all that our island has to offer.”
Tolene van der Merwe, Director of the Malta Tourism Authority for the UK and Ireland said: “On behalf of Visit Malta, we wish to send on our congratulations to H.E Fiona-Jayne Formosa on her appointment as the new Ambassador of Malta to Ireland. We are really looking forward to working closely with Ms Formosa on the promotion of Malta in Ireland and wish her every success in her new role.”
