Ljubica Acevska

Ljubica Z. Acevska (Macedonian: Љубица Ацевска, born 1957) is a Macedonian diplomat. A former U.S. citizen by naturalization and an economic consultant by profession, she quit her job in 1992 to become Macedonia's unofficial liaison in Washington, D.C. and relinquished U.S. citizenship in 1995 to take up her new officially-accredited role as the first Macedonian Ambassador to the United States. She served in that post until 2002, when she was succeeded by Nikola Dimitrov.

Early life and education Acevska's great-grandfather and her grandfather moved to the United States ahead of her parents, in 1917 and 1940. Her grandfather settled in Mansfield, Ohio, where he opened a restaurant.

Acevska was born and raised in the small village of Capari near Yugoslavia's border with Greece. She went on to attend Ohio State University, where she majored in political science.

Career Following her schooling, Acevska worked as a graduate school instructor and later became a partner and consultant in Middle East-focused international trade and economic development firm Gulf Enterprises.

Lobbying for recognition of Macedonia After Macedonia became an independent country in late 1991 with the breakup of Yugoslavia, Acevska, on her visits to the land of her birth, would often urge government officials there to send a representative to Washington. Eventually, President Kiro Gligorov asked her to take on that job, in what was intended to be only a temporary arrangement lasting for two months. She stepped down from her position at Gulf Enterprises in order to focus on the new appointment. With a budget of only $40,000 per year from the Macedonian government, she took on both diplomatic tasks such as debt negotiations with the International Monetary Fund and dealing with complaints from the State Department about Macedonia's adherence to voluntary export restraints or alleged violations of sanctions against Serbia, and consular tasks such as travel advice to Macedonians holding expired Yugoslav passports. She was officially appointed as ambassador in November 1995.

Post Ambassador Service Following her service as Ambassador, Acevska became a Public Policy Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and later became involved with humanitarian work in Haiti. From 2005 to 2008, Acevska co-hosted the Washington DC television talk show Conversations, where she discussed international issues.

Awards and honors Acevska received the Alumni Medalist Award from her alma mater Ohio State University in 1996 for "international distinction in service to humanity".

In 2022, United Macedonian Diaspora (UMD) named the "Acevska Congressional Internship Program" (ACIP) in Acevska's honor.