OTTAWA, ONTARIO – 2025 marks the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers. To recognize and celebrate the exceptional achievements of Canada’s professional Foreign Service Officers who have gone above and beyond, PAFSO has created the PAFSO 60 Diamond Jubilee Award.
Since launching the call for nominations, the Awards Committee received a strong response, with each submission highlighting the outstanding work and contributions of the nominees. After careful deliberation, the panel of judges has made its selection.
The recipient of the PAFSO 60 Diamond Jubilee Award is Janine Cocker, International Assistance Program Manager at Canada’s High Commission in Nairobi, Kenya.
Since 2003, Janine has consistently demonstrated initiative, creativity, and a tireless commitment to serving Canada and Canadians. She is renowned for her adaptability and inspiring others through her knowledge, boundless energy, and unwavering dedication.
Janine is well known for handling challenging situations with her trademark enthusiasm. As both the Head of Cooperation and the Political Counsellor at the Canadian High Commission in Georgetown, Guyana, Janine worked through the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. While her family was evacuated back to Canada, Janine remained at post assisting with repatriation efforts and ensuring that Canada’s development programming remained responsive and relevant during the crisis.
She has consistently demonstrated her dedication to serving Canada through her extensive experience in managing development programming according to Canadian priorities – including advancing the Feminist International Assistance Policy.
Janine is a skilled communicator who demonstrates respect for differences, identifies opportunities, and fosters meaningful partnerships to advance Canada’s interests. She has done this in areas of natural collaboration, but also in more challenging contexts, advancing gender equality, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and LGBTQI+ rights programming in more traditional societies like Kenya and Somalia.
A natural leader, Janine inspires those around her and is attentive to their personal well-being and professional growth. She provides thoughtful guidance and support to colleagues, employees, and mentees, promoting capacity building and helping them achieve their goals. Janine’s leadership has been tested under the pressures of meeting difficult deadlines, organizing high-level visits, navigating political instability, and a global pandemic.
It is for all her selfless dedication, innovation, creativity, adaptability and her ability to inspire those around her that Janine has earned the PAFSO 60 Diamond Jubilee Award. The award and its $1,000 prize were presented tonight at the PAFSO 60 anniversary gala at the National Gallery of Canada.
The Awards Committee would like to extend its thanks to everyone who took the time to support the nomination of a colleague. The members of the panel of judges were Michael Small, former President of PAFSO and current President of AmbCanada; Lillian Thomsen, former Director General and Dean of the Canadian Foreign Service Institute, and current Editor-in-Chief of bout de papier magazine; and Gérald Cossette, former Associate Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.