Maya Tissafi, born 1965, is a Social Scientist, graduated with a MPH, Master of Public Health (Universities of Zurich, Basel, Bern) and complemented her studies by a diploma as a Mediator. Since 1993, she has worked in international cooperation. For six years, she was the coordinator of the Christian Movement programs for Peace (CMP), an activity that led her to work in former Yugoslavia, Israel / Palestine and North Africa. From 2000 to 2002, she worked for SolidarMed on behalf of the Swiss Development and Cooperation Agency (SDC), Federal Department of Foreign Affairs as a technical advisor for the implementation of health sector reform in Tanzania and as Director of the Coordination Office in Ifakara SolidarMed. In 2002, she joined the Governance Section of the SDC headquarters at the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, where she served as head from 2005 until her appointment to the head of the Social Development Division in 2006. From 2008 to 2011, Ms. Tissafi has led the Eastern and Southern Africa Division. 

In 2011, she accepted the position as the Head of Corporate Domain South Cooperation SDC and Director General In-Charge with the title of Ambassador. 

In July 2015, she assumed the position of Ambassador Extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the Swiss Confederation to the United Arab Emirates and in November 2017 - in addition - the position of Ambassador Extraordinary and plenipotentiary to Bahrain and as the permanent representative to IRENA (International Renewable Energy Agency), based in the United Arab Emirates. 

From 2019 to 2024, she has worked as Assistant Secretary of State for Middle East and North Africa Division at the State Secretariat at Federal Department of Foreign Affairs Switzerland in Bern with a title of Ambassador. 2024 she was appointed as Ambassador Extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the Swiss Confederation to India and Bhutan.