Diplomatic Counsel

Profile: A senior diplomat with extensive leadership experience at the Ambassadorial level, Tim Martin brings in depth knowledge of commercial, political, security and intergovernmental affairs to add value to international development strategies, intergovernmental relations and investment projects.  Fluent in English, Spanish and French.

Experience: Tim served as Canadian Ambassador to Colombia, from September 2011 to December 2013 during which time he led the implementation of Canada’s free trade agreement, delivered strategic support to Canadian investors in Colombia and spearheaded the delivery of Canada’s peace, security and development programs. 

From August 2010 to July 2011 he was Representative of Canada in Kandahar (RoCK), Afghanistan where he led Canada’s whole of government civilian mission to deliver economic growth, security, governance and human rights programs for the benefit of the people of Kandahar in the context of NATO’s Afghanistan campaign. Examples of these initiatives included construction of schools for girls, eradication of polio, rehabilitation of irrigation canals for farmers and monitoring of human rights conditions in prisons.

As Ambassador to the Republics of Argentina and Paraguay from August 2007 to July 2010, Tim managed Canadian interests, including trade and investment promotion particularly in the energy and mining sectors, assisted Canadian companies with high level dispute resolution and maintained positive political relations in both Argentina and Paraguay.

A policy leader and experienced diplomatic practitioner, Tim has been at the forefront in Canadian peace and security work as Senior Director of the Stabilization and Reconstruction Task Force (START) at the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada from 2005 to 2007. His achievements as Chairman of the Kimberley Process on Conflict Diamonds for 2004 included implementation of the global certification scheme for the international trade in rough diamonds. In 1998, he opened the Canadian Representative Office in Ramallah, West Bank where he served as Representative of Canada to the Palestinian Authority for three years.

Tim’s African diplomatic experience encompasses Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan, Eritrea, Somalia, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi. As a program officer with the Canadian International Development Agency Tim managed multi-million dollar projects in the Caribbean and Central America.

Tim is a recipient of the Treasury Board’s Award of Excellence in the Public Service for his leadership on Canada’s humanitarian assistance to Palestinian children affected by conflict.  For his service to Canada he has been awarded three medals: the Commemorative medal of the 125th Anniversary of Confederation; the Queen’s Jubilee Medal; and the Operational Service Medal.

Areas of expertise: High level inter-governmental affairs; Host-country relations for investors; Human rights assessment and advocacy; Corporate Social Responsibility; Strategic security management; Conflict minerals; Peace processes; Combined civ/mil operations; Program planning and implementation.