H.E. José Manuel Barroso

Chair, Goldman Sachs International Advisors Chair, Gavi, The Vaccine Alliance

Bio Current as of March 7, 2023

José Manuel is chair of Goldman Sachs’ International Advisors. He joined the firm in 2016 as chair and non-executive director of Goldman Sachs International. José Manuel is also chair of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

Previously, José Manuel was president of the European Commission, having served two five-year terms from 2004 to 2014, where he played an influential role in the passing of the Treaty of Lisbon, responding to the financial crisis and incorporating new members in the European Union, as the EU went from 15 to 28 countries. Prior to that, he was Prime Minister of Portugal, a position he was elected to in 2002. Earlier in his career, José Manuel was president of the Social Democratic Party and became the leader of the opposition, a position he was elected to in 1999. Before that, he served in various roles in the Portuguese government, including as state secretary for home affairs, state secretary for foreign affairs and cooperation, and minister for foreign affairs. José Manuel was first elected to the Portuguese Parliament in 1985. In the Portuguese Foreign Ministry, José Manuel played a decisive role as the official mediator for the peace talks for Angola and he initiated the conversations with Indonesia, under the auspices of the UN Secretary General, for the independence of East Timor. Between 1992 and 1995 he negotiated with the People’s Republic of China the process for the handover of Macao.

On behalf of the EU, José Manuel received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2012.

His academic positions included visiting professor at Georgetown University and Princeton University. José Manuel is also a visiting professor at the Catholic University of Portugal, Lisbon, and at the European University Institute, School of Transnational Governance, Florence.

José Manuel has been awarded numerous honorary degrees and has received more than 60 decorations, prizes and honors, including Portugal’s Grã-Cruz da Ordem Militar de Cristo and Grande Colar da Ordem do Infante Dom Henrique. He earned a degree in Law from the University of Lisbon and earned a master’s degree in Political Science and a diploma in European Studies from the University of Geneva.