Auguste Henri was born in Bologna, Italy. After law studies at the University of Dijon, Ponsot entered the diplomatic career in 1903. After having stayed in Siam, Berlin and Canada, he was appointed as the Secretary General of the Tunisian Government in 1922. Appointed to the Sub-Directorate of African Affairs, he negotiated with the Spain an agreement for a joint action in Morocco and lead the talks of Oujda in May 1925.
Later on, Ponsot led the discussions with Amin al-Husseini in which the French authorities expected an improvement in France's status in the Arab world through his intermediaries.[5] After the World War II, Ponsot worked in Geneva to participate in the creation of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. There he was in 1947 elected chairman of the International Refugee Organization[6] and was also tasked with liquidating the organization in 1952.[7] He remained in Geneva for seven years until his final retirement.[4]
^"Part 2: The specialized agencies. Section 8: The International Refugee Organization. Chapter D: Preparatory Commission". Yearbook of the United Nations 1946-47(PDF). United Nations Publications. 1947. p. 807.
^"International Refugee Organization". International Organization. 6 (2): 309. 1952. JSTOR2704095.
