Ambassador Shari Villarosa was confirmed as Ambassador to the Republic of Mauritius and the Republic of Seychelles in September 2012. She previously served as Deputy Coordinator for Regional Affairs for the Bureau of Counterterrorism of the Department of State. She also served as Chief of Mission in Rangoon, Burma. Prior to that assignment she served as Director of Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore Affairs in the Department of State’s East Asia and Pacific Bureau; economic counselor of the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia; and Chargé d’Affaires in Dili, East Timor.
Ms. Villarosa has served in a variety of jobs in Washington and overseas over the course of her Foreign Service career. Her other overseas assignments have been in Songkhla, Thailand; Brasilia, Brazil; Quito, Ecuador; and Bogota, Colombia. Her assignments at the State Department in Washington have included special assistant to the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs; Deputy Director of the Office of Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam Affairs; Singapore and Indonesia desk officer; and in the Office of Investment Affairs. In addition, she spent a year at the East-West Center in Honolulu, Hawaii as Diplomat-in-Residence.
Ms. Villarosa graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a degree in international studies. She also has a law degree from William and Mary. She speaks Spanish, Portuguese, Thai, and Indonesian.