This morning, the Holy Father Francis received in audience His Excellency Mr. Hendy Anak Assan, ambassador of Malaysia to the Holy See, on the occasion of the presentation of his credential letters.

The following is a brief biography of the new ambassador:

His Excellency Hendy Anak Assan
Ambassador of Malaysia to the Holy See

His Excellency Hendy Anak Assan was born in Kuching, Sarawak, on 22 May 1970. He is married with two children.

He graduated in history from the Malaya University (1994) and obtained a diploma in public administration from the National Institute of Public Administration (INTAN) (1997).

He has held the following roles: assistant director, ASEAN, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1995 - 1996); assistant secretary, Americas Division, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1997 - 1999); second secretary, Embassy in Senegal (1999 - 2002); counsellor, Embassy in Italy (2002 - 2006); deputy principal secretary, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam and Oceania (CLMVO), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2006 - 2010) consul general in Shanghai/People's Republic of China (2010 - 2014); deputy chief of Mission, Embassy in Japan (2014 - 2017) under secretary, International Cooperation and Development Division (ICADD), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2017 - 2018); under secretary, East Asia Division, MFA (2018): ambassador to Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan (2018 - 2023).