Joseph Gilles André Couvrette

Joseph Gilles André Couvrette (15 January 1934 – 31 December 2020) was a Canadian diplomat who held several international postings.

He served as Canada’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to various countries, as well as High Commissioner to The Gambia.

Early life and family Couvrette was born on 15 January 1934 in Outremont, Quebec, Canada, to businessman and former mayor of Outremont, Bernard Couvrette, and Myrielle Chartrand. He later married Micheline Couvrette, with whom he had four children: Louis, Michel, Anne-Marie, and Philippe.

Career Couvrette’s diplomatic career began in 1959 with his first posting to Rome, Italy, where he served until 1962. He subsequently held assignments in Lagos, Nigeria (1965–1967), and Paris, France (1967–1968). His first ambassadorship was in Dakar, Senegal, where he was accredited to multiple countries, including Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Cape Verde, and Guinea-Bissau. He was then appointed Ambassador to Beirut, Lebanon, concurrently serving as ambassador to Jordan and Syria. Later assignments included ambassadorial roles in Stockholm, Sweden, and Athens, Greece, marking the end of his international career.

In Canada, Couvrette held prominent roles, including Chief of Protocol and Assistant Under Secretary of State for External Affairs, where he oversaw diplomatic protocols and international relations.

Death Couvrette died on 31 December 2020, at the age of 86, at the Hôpital Élizabeth-Bruyère in Ottawa. His family held a visitation at the Complexe Alfred Dallaire Memoria on 8 January 2021, with a funeral at St-Viateur d'Outremont Church on a later date.