The new Secretary General of the Spain-Peru, Spain-Brazil, and Spain-Colombia Foundations, Mar Fernández Palacios, will take up her duties “once the summer period is over,” according to the respective websites of the three public diplomacy institutions.
Fernández Palacios accepted her appointment on July 22, when the boards of the three foundations agreed in a joint videoconference session —in which the Secretary of State for Ibero-America, Susana Sumelzo, participated— to formalize the change in their respective general secretariats, which had been led by Ambassador Rafael Garranzo since November 2025.
In the farewell to Garranzo, especially emotional, the attendees emphasized his dedication and commitment during the time he was at the head of the General Secretariat and conveyed their best wishes for the stage he is now starting.
Next, and at the proposal of the Secretary of State, the respective boards approved the appointment of María del Mar Fernández Palacios Carmona as the new Secretary General.
Fernández Palacios, a diplomat with an extensive Ibero-American career, has served in destinations such as Beijing, Brasilia, Havana, Rabat, and the Permanent Representation of Spain to NATO. She has also been an ambassador in Nicaragua and Brazil.
In the central services of the Ministry, she has held, among other responsibilities, the general direction of Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean and the advisory position in the Cabinet of the Presidency of the Government for inter-American affairs.
The meeting also allowed to highlight the importance of the moment that the three foundations are going through, with the upcoming Ibero-American Summit of Heads of State and Government on the horizon, and, as noted on the website of the Spain-Peru Foundation, “to gather the trust of patrons and presidents that the stage that opens with this change will serve to give greater impetus to the activity of the foundations and consolidate their status as benchmarks of public diplomacy between Spain and the Ibero-American region.”
