Chad Blackman born in October 1982, is a Barbadian politician and former diplomat. He was appointed to the Senate of Barbados by the Prime Minister of Barbados Mia Amor Mottley, as well as Minister in the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Investment on January 8, 2024. He served as the Senior Advisor to the Director-General of the International Labour Organization, H.E Gilbert Houngbo until January 7, 2024 and was Barbados' Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations and Geneva, Vienna, and Rome, and former Ambassador to Switzerland, Austria, Serbia and Hungary.[1] As Ambassador, he was President of the G77 and China Geneva Chapter; Co-ordinator of the Group of Small Island Developing States; Co-ordinator of the Group of Latin-America and Caribbean Countries GRULAC, and was a Global Board Member of the United Nations International Gender Champions. Blackman is also an international trade law specialist. Within the Cabinet of the ILO, he has responsibility for Latin-America & The Caribbean, the African Region, the United Nations, and external relations and corporate services. He has served as the youth development consultant with the Commonwealth Secretariat in London. He served as the chair for the Trade and Development, and Trade and Environment Committees in the World Trade Organization (WTO).[2] Blackman is also the first Ambassador of Barbados to Serbia.[3] He also Chaired the SIDS Group in the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.[4]
An alumnus of the Christ Church Foundation School, Mr. Blackman obtained his bachelor's of law degree and masters in International Trade Law at the University of Essex, United Kingdom.