Ladislav Straka

Ladislav Straka, Ambassador of Slovakia

Upon our arrival in South Africa it was our pleasure to dine with ‘Cino’ and his lovely wife Clair at the home of our hosts Luiza and Milan in a suburb of Johannesburg. The following day we had coffee with the ambassador in the impressive stone embassy located in Pretoria, the administrative capital of South Africa which contains 132 embassies, second only in number to Washington DC!

‘Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary’ and ‘His Excellency’ is the common way to address ambassadors, but Cino is no common ambassador. He is a former documentary film maker, actor, and businessman who has made Africa his home for many years. Born in Bratislava to a doctor father and artist mother, he is an extraordinarily creative and altruistic humanist with a wry sense of humor and an infectious laugh. Here is his introduction, in his own words, on the Slovakian Embassy website:

It is my pleasure to welcome you to the virtual seat of the diplomatic mission of Slovakia in South Africa. Our Embassy covers 12 countries from the subsaharan region – South Africa, Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Interests of the Slovak citizens are also protected and promoted by 4 Honorary Consulates of Slovakia in this region – in Cape Town (South Africa), Maputo (Mozambique), Blantyre (Malawi) and Lusaka (Zambia).