The United States Ambassador to Papua New Guinea, Leslie V. Rowe, began her appointment on October 15, 2006. She is also the ambassador to the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Rowe received a B.A. from Washington State University, an M.A. from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, and an M.Ed from Northeastern University. She also received a certificate from the Sorbonne in Paris, France, and was a Fulbright scholar in Germany. She taught foreign languages in high school and became the Director of the International Office of Tufts University.

Joining the Foreign Service in 1983, Rowe served in San Jose, Costa Rica and Sao Paulo, Brazil. She was Principal Officer at the U.S. Consulate in Recife, Brazil; country desk officer for Chile; Director of the Office of Children’s Issues at the Department of State; Consul General in Lisbon, Portugal; and Consul General in Bangkok, Thailand. Her most recent posting before taking her position as ambassador to Papua New Guinea, the Solomons and Vanuatu was as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy n Nairobi, Kenya. Rowe speaks French, Portuguese, and Spanish.