Valdis Dombrovskis

Valdis Dombrovskis

Prime Minister of Latvia
Incumbent
Assumed office 
12 March 2009
President Valdis Zatlers
Preceded by Ivars Godmanis
Born 5 August 1971 (1971-08-05) (age 39)
Riga, Soviet Union (now Latvia)
Political party New Era Party
Alma mater University of Latvia
Riga Technical University
Photo of Prime Minister of Latvia, Valdis Dombrovskis (left) and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Dr. Philip H. Gordon (right)

Valdis Dombrovskis (born 5 August 1971) is a Latvian politician, currently serving as Prime Minister of Latvia.[1] Previously he served as Latvia's Minister of Finance and was a Member of the European Parliament for the New Era Party.

Education and science career

Born in Riga, Dombrovskis graduated from the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics at the University of Latvia. He earned a Bachelor's degree in economics for engineers from Riga Technical University in 1995 and a Master's degree in physics from the University of Latvia in 1996. He has worked as a laboratory assistant at the Institute of Physics of Mainz University, Germany from 1995 to 1996, as an assistant at the Institute of Solid-State Physics of the University of Latvia in 1997, and as a research assistant at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of Maryland University, United States in 1998.

Political activity

Dombrovskis has been a Member of the Board of the New Era Party since 2002. He was Minister of Finance of Latvia from 2002 to 2004 and a Member of the Latvian Parliament during its 8th parliamentary term (2002–2004). Then he was Observer at the Council of the European Union (2003–2004).

As Member of the European Parliament, Dombrovskis was a member of three European Parliament Committees: Committee on Budgets, Delegation to the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, Delegation to the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly. He is also a Subtitute at Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, Committee on Budgetary Control and delegation to the EU-Kazakhstan, EU-Kyrgyzstan and EU-Uzbekistan Parliamentary Cooperation Committees, and for relations with Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Mongolia.

Dombrovskis was also one of six Members of the European Parliament participating in the European Union's observer mission in Togo for the October 2007 Togolese parliamentary election.[2]

On February 26, 2009, following the resignation of Ivars Godmanis, President Valdis Zatlers nominated Dombrovskis to succeed Godmanis as Prime Minister of Latvia.[1] It was believed that his government would consist of three of the four previously governing parties (all but Godmanis' LPP/LC), his own New Era Party and a smaller right-wing party (the Civic Union); the government was approved on 12 March 2009.[3]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Dombrovskis chosen as Latvian PM". BBC News. February 26, 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7911983.stm. Retrieved February 26, 2009. 
  2. ↑ "Arrivée à Lomé des députés européens", Republicoftogo.com, October 11, 2007 (French).
  3. ↑ http://www.javno.com/en-world/latvia-government-named-differences-emerge_239733
Saeima
Preceded by
Unknown		 Member of Saeima
2002 – 2004		 Succeeded by
Unknown
European Parliament
Preceded by
Unknown		 Member of the European Parliament
2004 – 2009		 Succeeded by
Liene Liepina
Political offices
Preceded by
Unknown		 Finance Minister of Latvia
2002 – 2004		 Succeeded by
Unknown
Preceded by
Ivars Godmanis		 Prime Minister of Latvia
2009 – present		 Incumbent
Cabinet of Ministers of Latvia
Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis
Minister of Defence: Artis Pabriks · Minister of Foreign Affairs: Ģirts Valdis Kristovskis · Minister of Economics: Artis Kampars · Minister of Finance: Andris Vilks · Minister of the Interior: Linda Mūrniece · Minister of Education and Science: Rolands Broks · Minister of Culture: Sarmīte Ēlerte · Minister of Welfare: Ilona Jurševska · Minister of Regional Development and Local Governments: Valdis Dombrovskis · Minister of Transport: Uldis Augulis · Minister of Justice: Aigars Štokenbergs · Minister of Health: Juris Bārzdiņš · Minister of the Environment: Raimonds Vējonis · Minister of Agriculture: Jānis Dūklavs
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