David Donoghue was born in Dublin and has had a long and distinguished career in Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs.  

Among his many achievements, David was one of the Irish Government’s negotiators for the Good Friday Agreement. He also served as Irish Ambassador in Russia, Germany and Austria. From 2001-4 he was the Director General of Ireland’s development co-operation programme, today known as Irish Aid. As Political Director from 2009-13, he had responsibility for Ireland’s overall foreign policy. From 2013-17 Ambassador Donoghue was the Permanent Representative of Ireland to the United Nations in New York. He served as co-facilitator (with Kenya) for the UN negotiations which led to the adoption of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals ( known as SDG’s) in 2015. The SDGs are increasingly being recognized as a beneficial framework for responsible investment as the business world shifts its focus more intensively on ESG.

 

Ambassador Donoghue retired from the Irish Foreign Service in September 2017. He is currently contributing to the work of a number of think-tanks and academic institutions on the challenges associated with implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. David sits on the board of Irish NGO , Trócaire.