Jonathan Austin took up the position of Ambassador to Indonesia in May 2019 and presented his credentials in August 2019 following three years in Singapore as New Zealand High Commissioner to Singapore and Ambassador to Maldives.

Prior to moving to Singapore Dr Austin was Director, Intelligence and Assessment (and head of the National Assessments Bureau) in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet in Wellington. His previous career was in the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, most recently as Director-General of the Middle East and Africa Division.

From 2010 to 2012 he was New Zealand High Commissioner to the Kingdom of Tonga. This followed secondments as Senior Foreign Affairs Adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and two years in the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands where he was Deputy Special Coordinator and New Zealand’s senior representative.

Earlier diplomatic postings have included South Africa, New Zealand’s first representative, and subsequently Consul-General, in East Timor and a posting in Tonga. In Wellington he has worked in development policy, on UN issues, Indonesia and Europe strategy.

Bernie brings extensive business knowledge and experience in the infrastructure sector to the Beachheads team, spanning aviation and construction, energy and financial services.

Based in Jakarta, his ties with New Zealand began when he was appointed to the Beachheads team and represented Hawkins Infrastructure in Indonesia for a period. Since then, he has drawn on his experience as a senior advisor to investors, corporations, bilateral agencies, and governments in Indonesia and the region, to help New Zealand companies succeed.

Pak Bernie is the Country Head of Deloitte Infrastructure based in Jakarta, and is heading Deloitte’s Financial Services’ Government and Public Sector group for South East Asia, and is well respected in his field. He is also the President of the Indonesian Association of Urban & Regional Planners.

Having worked on public private partnerships and major capital projects, Pak Bernie is well-placed to advise New Zealand companies on how to navigate the infrastructure, constructions, and energy sectors, as well as providing advice on business strategy for market entry. He can draw on his experience in senior positions with leading global companies including American Express Bank, Ernst & Young and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

He is well aware of the opportunities and challenges of the infrastructure sector in Indonesia, and serves as a director on several infrastructure company boards.

Pak Bernie’s expertise is sought-after internationally, and he is

a member of the Advisory Council of APEC Center for Urban Infrastructure Financing based in Melbourne, and a Fellow/Faculty at the Salzburg Global Seminar, a globalisation think tank based in Salzburg, Austria.


Early in his career, he was awarded the American Express Worldwide Best Performer Award in 1993, the chairman’s top award for performance and customer service (he remains the only Indonesian to have received the award).

Advisory areas
Business strategy, Market development, Infrastructure, Strategy development, Collaborative partnerships and Marketing

Sectors areas
Aviation, Building/Construction, Energy/Utilities, Financial Services, Government.

Diana Permana is New Zealand’s Trade Commissioner to Indonesia, based in Jakarta.

Diana joined NZTE in November 2013 as a business development manager focused on the renewable energy, aviation, and specialised manufacturing sectors.

Prior to joining NZTE, Diana worked with Commonwealth Bank in Jakarta for 2 years banking experience managing fresh funds and customer’s investment portfolios and also as business development manager for 8 years in the Australian Trade Commission in Jakarta.

Her key role was managing the infrastructure, building & construction, Private Public Partnership development program and renewable energy development portfolios for the Indonesian market.

Diana obtained her Bachelor Degree in Business Administration majoring in Marketing from Upper Iowa University in Singapore.