Bob Bowker (Robert Bowker) retired from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in 2008 after a 37 year career working mostly on the Middle East. He was posted to Saudi Arabia from 1974 to 2006, and Syria from 1979 to 1981. He was Australian ambassador to Jordan (1989-1992). He was Director of External Relations and Public Information, and later Senior Adviser, Policy Research of UNRWA in 1997-1998, based in Gaza and Jerusalem. He was the Australian ambassador to Egypt (2005-2008) and non-resident Australian ambassador to Syria, Libya, Tunisia and Sudan. Following his retirement from DFAT he returned to the Australian National University Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies where he was Adjunct Professor from 2008 to 2016, and an Honorary Visiting Fellow from 2017 to 2019.
He is the author of six books and numerous publications on Middle East issues.
Book of the month July 2023: Tomorrow There Will Be Apricots: An Australian Diplomat In The Arab World
