GSMA - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Market Engagement Manager, Mobile Innovation Hub Indonesia
Achmad Pradipta (Dipta) is the Market Engagement Manager of the Mobile Innovation Hub Indonesia. As the Market Engagement Manager, Dipta works closely with the local Mobile Network Operators (MNOs), other technology partners and policy makers to explore partnership opportunities to build innovative and impactful projects that use mobile enabled digital tech solutions to assist Indonesia's journey towards reaching national climate goals.
Prior to GSMA, Dipta has worked across multiple companies and various industries from start-ups, consulting firms, MNOs as well as mining companies where he played a pivoting role helping them to build their sustainability portfolios and to increase their industry reputation through impactful projects such as XL Future Leaders. Dipta's holds a Degree in Marketing & Commerce which he completed as part of the International Double Degree Graduate Programme affiliated with Curtin University, Perth, Australia. Perth.
Job Titles:
- CEO Vodafone UK, Vodafone Group
- Chief Commercial Operations and Strategy Officer
Ahmed Essam was appointed Chief Commercial Operations and Strategy Officer in October 2018 and prior to this, he was CEO of the Europe Cluster which comprises Albania, Czech Republic, Greece, Ireland, Hungary, Malta, Portugal and Romania.
Ahmed held the position of CEO, Vodafone Egypt from July 2014 to September 2016. He joined Vodafone Egypt in 1999 and held a variety of roles including Customer Care Director and Consumer Business Unit Director. Previously he was the Group Commercial Management Director for the Africa Middle East and Asia Pacific region and has held a number of senior roles within Vodafone's Group Commercial functions.
Ahmed graduated from Cairo University with an Honours Degree in Systems and Biomedical Engineering and also holds an MBA and Management Diploma from Henley Management College, UK.
Job Titles:
- Senior Market Engagement Manager, AgriTech ( Islamabad )
Ahmed is a Senior Market Engagement Manager for the AgriTech programme based in Islamabad, Pakistan. He provides consultancy and implementation support to AgriTech partners across the Asia Pacific region, focusing on the design, development, launch and commercialization of B2B and B2C agritech products and platforms. He also leads the user experience and design workstream for the programme. Before joining GSMA, Ahmed was managing multiple mobile money products for Telenor easypaisa. Prior to that, he worked with Standard Chartered Bank, primarily within the product management and Small and Medium Enterprise functions.
Ahmed completed his undergraduate studies from the Lahore University of Management Sciences and his MBA from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Job Titles:
- Head of Sub - Saharan Africa Took Part in an Online Mobile Broadband Inclusion Media Roundtable at the Request of .
Akinwale Goodluck, Head of Sub-Saharan Africa took part in an online Mobile Broadband Inclusion media roundtable at the request of ...
Job Titles:
- Technology & Strategic Engagement Director
Alejandro is committed to promoting the adoption of new technologies and creating new digital services for Latin America through direct work with more than 60 GSMA member operators. It is also in charge of Strategic Relationship activities with the companies in the digital ecosystem that make up the value chain, including the coordination of Interest Groups, identifying the most relevant content and trends that shape industry events and representing the GSMA in the media and discussion tables throughout the region.
His areas of expertise are the development of technology businesses and the formulation of strategies in ICT, and he has extensive experience and trajectory in the telecommunications sector. Before joining the GSMA, Alejandro held various managerial roles in the Telefónica Group as Director of Marketing, CEO of Terra Argentina, Director of Digital Content at Telefe and VP of Wholesale Business, Regulation and Strategy for Argentina as a member of the Executive Committee for ten years. He previously worked at NEC and various technology and service companies.
He is an Electronics Engineer from the National Technological University and has a Master's in Business Administration from the CEMA University. In addition, he has postgraduate studies in Marketing from the University of California.
Job Titles:
- Chief Technology Officer
- CTO, GSMA According
- CTO, GSMA the
Alex Sinclair is the Chief Technology Officer for the GSMA. He has held this position since 2005, having joined the organisation in 2003. In this role, Alex is responsible for driving the technology direction of the GSMA and working with its membership to execute key technology initiatives.
With more than 30 years' experience in telecommunications in general and mobile in particular, Alex has worked for a number of companies in the UK, Germany and the US. In the early 1990s, he was part of the project team that launched the T-Mobile D1 network in Germany. In 1995, Alex helped Syniverse to launch their GSM clearinghouse business.
Prior to joining the GSMA, Alex was Director of Network Engineering at ICO, a global satellite venture. Alex holds a Bachelors Degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Bristol.
Job Titles:
- Electronic Engineer
- Technology & Strategic Engagement Senior Manager
Alfredo is an electronic engineer specialising in telecommunications (Buenos Aires Institute of Technology) with more than 10 years' experience in the telecommunications industry working for leading international firms. He is a technology consultant for regulatory affairs and has extensive experience as a project leader in developing, implementing and improving performance in a wide range of technologies and systems. He has gained experience at executive level and worked for one year in Brazil. Alfredo is a certified Senior Project Manager (Ericsson) and a Project Management Professional (Project Management Institute) and has completed further training courses in leadership skills (IAE Business School, Ericsson Academy) and project management.
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Spectrum & Policy, South Asia ( India )
Ashish is the Senior Manager, Spectrum and Policy, South Asia for the GSMA.
Prior to joining the GSMA, Ashish held various positions in the ICT sector including with Reliance Communications, Etisalat, Samsung Networks and industry associations including infrastructure providers. In these roles he was responsible for delivering projects in spectrum management, digital Infrastructure, broadband penetration, sectoral taxation, M2M/IoT etc.
Ashish specialises in the field of spectrum management and has a wealth of experience in managing and resolving complex issues such as spectrum re-farming, harmonization, auctions including active participation with Government for review of National Frequency Allocation Plans and implementation of WRC decisions at Regional and National levels.
Ashish holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electronics and Communications, from MD University India, and a post graduate Diploma in Business Management from Narsee Monjee University in India.
Job Titles:
- Vice President
- Vice President of China United Network Communications Group Corporation Limited
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager Asia for the GSMA Innovation Fund
- Senior Manager, GSMA Innovation Fund ( Islamabad )
Bilal is a Senior Manager Asia for the GSMA Innovation Fund based in Islamabad, Pakistan. He engages with the start-up ecosystem including tech hubs, venture capitalists, mobile operators, government institutions and founders to catalyse innovation. Moreover, he manages GSMA Innovation grants across Asian markets with an objective of creating social economic impact. Previously, Bilal has worked with Karandaaz Pakistan where he led digital financial inclusion initiatives for private and public sectors. Prior to Karandaaz, he worked for Easypaisa, where he launched Pakistan's first ‘Pay as you go' solar system to provide low cost, high quality renewable energy to off-grid areas. Bilal has also worked on development projects during his assignments with UNDP and the World Bank.
Bilal has an MBA from Institute of Business Management, Karachi, Pakistan. He has also received training in financial inclusion and policy design from Harvard Kennedy School.
Job Titles:
- Policy Director
- Policy Director, APAC
Charles Chew is the Policy Director, APAC at the GSMA and is based in Singapore.
Prior to joining the GSMA, Charles was Director (International) at the Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore (IMDA), the national regulator for the Infocomm and Media sectors, where he was involved in Telecommunications, ICT, Internet and Digital Economy issues. He was also the lead negotiator for Telecommunications and E-Commerce issues in Singapore's Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), and represented Singapore at regional and international organisations and groupings, including ASEAN, APEC, Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT), G20, OCED and the ITU.
Charles graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration with Honours from the National University of Singapore.
Job Titles:
- Marketing Director, APAC ( Hong Kong )
Christina is responsible for developing and implementing GSMA's marketing and communications strategies across the APAC region.
Prior to joining the GSMA, Christina held senior marketing positions in companies such as Microsoft, Lenovo, Dell, and Compaq. She has extensive experience in Product Marketing and Strategy, Project Management and Marketing Communications.
Christina holds a BSc in Computer Science and an MBA in International Marketing.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Policy and Regulation & Head of Europe, Russia and CIS
Daniel leads the GSMA's global engagement on mobile-sector regulatory affairs. Under his direction, the GSMA is contributing new ideas and analysis to the global policy dialogue at a time when emerging digital technologies and widespread broadband connectivity are reshaping society and the economy.
Daniel also leads the GSMA activities in Europe, Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). He is responsible for all Advocacy Initiatives (Public Policy, Spectrum, Mobile for Development, External Affairs), Strategic Engagement and Industry Programmes (Future Networks, Identity, Internet of Things) of the GSMA in the wider European region.
Daniel has a unique record of strategic input into Europe's telecommunications policy agenda, having previously served as head of Hungary's National Regulatory Authority, chair of the European Regulators Group (ERG, now BEREC) and chair of the European Radio Spectrum Policy Group (RSPG). More recently, Daniel was Director General of the European Telecommunications Network Operators' association (ETNO).
He holds a MSc in Economics from the Budapest University of Economics and a Postgraduate Diploma from a leading French institutional programme led by Ecole de Mines, Ecole des Ponts and Sciences-Po.
He was awarded the Officer's Cross of the Order of the Republic of Hungary in 2009 for his work in EU electronic communication regulation and the Order of Merit (Knight's Cross) of the Republic of Hungary in 2005 for his work promoting the development of the information and communications technology sector.
Job Titles:
- Head of Technology for the GSMA Asia Pacific
- Head of Technology, APAC
David Turkington is the Head of Technology for the GSMA Asia Pacific. David is responsible for driving the technology direction of the GSMA across the APAC region and working with its membership to execute key technology initiatives. Prior to joining the GSMA, David held senior positions in companies including Pixel Networks, Ericsson, SmarTone, Nokia and British Telecom. David is a Chartered Engineer and member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- Senior Director, Advocacy and Industry Engagement, GSMA ( Delhi )
Debashish Chakraborty is a management professional with 26 years of experience in managing global strategic alliances, building partner ecosystems, policy advocacy, new business development, technology consulting, and key account management roles in diverse industries like IT, Telecom, Data Centres, Smart Cities, Green Buildings, Internet Service Provider (ISP), and IT system integration, with a successful track record of being outcome focused.
Prior to joining GSMA, Debashish was working with Schneider Electric, leading strategic initiatives like the start-up ecosystem program, policy advocacy for smart cities, influence and standardisation activities, influencing and advocating the policies for the New Energy Landscape, as part of the Corporate Strategy team. He has worked with Reliance Infocomm and Tata Communications during the early stages of his career.
Debashish holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electronics from Marathwada University and is a Post-Graduate in Business Administration from Symbiosis.
Job Titles:
- Board Member for Europe, Deutsche Telekom Group
- Member of the Board of Management of Deutsche Telekom AG
Since November 2020, Ms. Leroy has served as a member of the Board of Management of Deutsche Telekom AG.
She is responsible for the Board Area Europe. Ms. Leroy has over 30 years of experience in the consumer goods and telecommunication sector. She started her career at Unilever where her last position was Managing Director for Belgium and Luxembourg. In 2011 she joined Proximus (formerly Belgacom) where she quickly became Head of the Consumer Market and held the position of CEO from 2014 to 2019. During this time she managed to turn around the company with a continuous growth phase and a strong customer experience focus. Over the last year, she was an Advisor at Bain & Company. Ms. Leroy currently serves as a director at Royal Ahold Delhaize and Compagnie de Saint Gobain. In addition, she has more than 10 years of Board experience, having been a Board Member at Lotus Bakeries, Proximus, and BICS. She holds a Master's degree in Industrial Engineering and Management from the Solvay Business School in Brussels.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director in America Movil
- Executive Director, International Relations, Government & Corporate Affairs, América Móvil Group
Carlos M. Jarque is Executive Director in America Movil, heading international relations and government and corporate affairs. He is a member of the Board of Telekom Austria Group, and member of the Broadband Commission.
He holds a Bachelor Degree in Actuarial Science and Finance from Anahuac University; a Master Degree from The London School of Economics; a Post Graduate Certificate from the University of Oslo; a Ph.D. from The Australian National University; and a Post-Doctoral from Harvard University.
In his professional career he has been Director of Economic Studies in Telmex; President of the Inter Ministerial Committee for Public Finances; President of the National Institute of Statistics, Geography, and Information (INEGI, official statistics Agency for Mexico); Secretary of Mexico's National Development Plan, and Minister of Social Development in the Mexican Cabinet.
He has had a distinguished international career, being Director of the International Statistical Institute; President of the UN Statistical Commission (leading the definition of the Millennium Development Goals); President of the UN Cartographic Conference; Director and Secretary General of the Inter-American Development Bank; and CEO of a leading international group for infrastructure and citizen services, Fomento de Construcciones y Contratos (FCC), with activities in 35 countries.
He led the integration of Mexico's First National Informatics Development Plan. Dr. Carlos M. Jarque has received several awards: Honorary Doctorate from Anahuac University; Benito Juarez Medal of Merit; Quetelet Medal; the Mahalanobis Lifetime Award by the International Statistical Institute; Prize "Ricardo Flores Magon" for support to Freedom of the Press and of Expression; Prize 2017 Master of GOLD of the Royal Forum of Top Business Executives (Forum that includes High executives of Ibero America, President of Honor King of Spain).
He has taught at the Faculty of Economics at the Australian National University; ITAM; Anahuac University, and has been a visiting scholar at Harvard University teaching in its Doctoral Program in Economics.
Job Titles:
- CEO for Telecommunications Business
- CEO Telecommunications Business & Joint Acting Group CEO, Axiata Group BhD
In his capacity as the CEO for Telecommunications Business, Dr Wijayasuriya heads the pan-region Telecommunications Operations of the Axiata Group Bhd., spanning the markets of Malaysia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Cambodia.
Dr Wijayasuriya serves on the Boards of several Axiata Group Companies across Asia including Dialog Axiata PLC in Sri Lanka, where, for 19 years up to 2016, he held the role of Group Chief Executive. During the Period 2012-14, Dr Wijayasuriya also functioned as the Founding CEO of Axiata Digital Services - the Group-wide Digital Services Business of the Axiata Group.
In the Year 2016, Dr Wijayasuriya was honored by the GSM Association as the first recipient of the "Outstanding Contribution to the Asian Mobile Industry" Award. Dr. Wijayasuriya is a past Chairman of GSM Asia Pacific - the regional interest group of the GSM Association and has been a frequent Keynote Speaker and Panelist at GSMA events including the Mobile World Congress. Dr Wijayasuriya has also served on the Board of the TMForum.
Dr. Wijayasuriya has published widely on the subject of digital mobile communications, including research papers in publications of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) USA, Royal Society and the Institute of Engineering Technology (IET) UK (S.S.H Wijayasuriya et. al).
Dr Wijayasuriya is the immediate Past Chairman of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce and has formerly served on the Boards of the Sri Lanka Institute for Nano Technology, the Information & Communications Technology Agency of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Institute for Information Technology and the Arthur C. Clarke Institute for Modern Technologies as its Chair. Dr Wijayasuriya was named ‘Sri Lankan of the Year' by Sri Lanka's premier business journal the LMD in 2008.
Dr. Wijayasuriya graduated from the University of Cambridge UK in 1989. He subsequently obtained his PhD in Digital Mobile Communications from the University of Bristol UK in 1994. A Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Institute of Engineering Technology UK, Dr. Wijayasuriya also holds an MBA from the University of Warwick UK.
Dr. Hyeonmo Ku is currently CEO of KT. He was appointed as the CEO of KT in March 2020.Prior to his appointment as CEO, Dr. Ku served as President and Chief of Customer & Media Business Group. Dr. Ku served as Chief Strategy Officer from 2015 to 2018. He also served as Chief of Staff in 2014. Prior to that, he served as Chief Operating Officer of Telecom & Convergence Business Group in 2013. Dr. Ku is a veteran in the telecommunications industry with more than 33 years of experience. He has assumed outstanding leadership in the development of business strategy. From 2009 to 2012, he was the head of Strategy and Sales Unit in Mobile Business Department, where he played a key role in making mobile business strategy, as well as planning and implementing of distribution channel strategy of KT. He started his career in ICT industry at KT after graduating from the Seoul National University with a Bachelor's Degree in Industrial Engineering in 1985. He received a Master of Science degree in Management Science and Ph.D. in Management Engineering from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) in 1987 and 1998, respectively
Dr. Wang Jianzhou, former Chairman of China Mobile, is a senior advisor to the GSMA
Article: Calling for Further Innovation of Mobile Devices
Job Titles:
- Market Engagement Director, Mobile Innovation Hub ( Indonesia ) & ClimateTech
Dulip is the Market Engagement Director for the Mobile Innovation Hub (Indonesia) as well as the ClimateTech programme. Dulip leads the implementation of the Mobile Innovation Hub project in Jakarta (in partnership with GIZ) where he leads the local team to work closely with the Indonesian government and local stakeholders, on areas that sit at the intersection of mobile, digital innovation, sustainable development, and climate action to route mobile tech solutions for climate mitigation, resilience and adaptation solutions in Indonesia.
Based in Kandy, Sri Lanka, Dulip works closely with mobile operators, technical partners and other key stakeholders in the private and public sectors to unlock and enhance the role of digital technology as enabler in the world's transition to the low carbon economy. In his previous role with GSMA Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation programme, Dulip managed the Humanitarian Connectivity Charter and supported mobile operators, technical and humanitarian partners to collaborate and work towards more innovative and resilient digital solutions for communities faced with sudden onset disasters and protracted crisis situations.
Dulip worked with Axiata Group in Malaysia and its OpCo Dialog in Sri Lanka managing their sustainability reporting process. He also set up the sustainability strategy for the Axiata Group. Dulip's first degree is in Natural Sciences. He's a trained GRI professional, ISO 9001 and SA8000 auditor.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Compliance Team
- Head of Subgrants Compliance
As Finance & Compliance Business Partner, Elizabeth supports the GSMA Mobile for Development programmes, providing advisory and compliance oversight in areas of procurement, grant and budget management, and donor reporting. Prior to joining the GSMA in 2015, Elizabeth worked for Fountain Gate, a not-for-profit mental health clinic and therapeutic agricultural centre in Atlanta, where she was responsible for leading the organization in areas of finance, HR, development, and compliance. She brings over 10 years of experience in finance and compliance leadership for non-profit and social service agencies. Elizabeth has a Bachelor of Science in Human Services with a concentration in International Affairs from Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Georgia and a Master of Business Administration from Shorter University in Rome, Georgia.
Elizabeth Wiltshire is the Manager for EU Affairs at GSMA, focusing on Digital Economy across Europe, including files on artificial intelligence and data. She is also an Associate Fellow on future technologies, with an interest in digital rights and digital inclusion, at the Institute for Global Change.
Prior to joining GSMA, Elizabeth worked across sectors and levels of governance on digital and space policy, as well as digital democracy and democratic innovation. She holds a degree in Politics and International Relations from the University of Sussex.
Outside of work, Elizabeth sits on the management committee and is event lead at The Brussels Binder - a charity working for intersectional gender equality in the workplace, including an end to all-male panels, across Europe.
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager for Spectrum
As Senior Manager for Spectrum, Emma leads on GSMA Europe's efforts to represent the mobile industry on European spectrum policy, helping to develop and deliver an advocacy agenda that ensures mobile operators have timely and affordable access to appropriate spectrum.
An Economist by training, Emma has experience in academic research as well as a corporate and regulated company environment and is specialised in telecommunications regulation, market and policy analysis.
Emma has extensive experience working on a broad range of telecoms regulatory and public policy issues having previously worked as the in-house Regulatory Economist and EU-level representative for the former Irish incumbent, Eir.
Prior to joining GSMA in 2021, Emma also worked as a Senior Analyst with Cullen International, monitoring and reporting on EU and national telecoms and spectrum policy developments.
Emma holds a MSc in Economics and Policy in addition to a Bachelor of Commerce (International) from the National University of Ireland Galway.
Job Titles:
- Manager, GSMA Innovation Fund ( Jakarta )
Falah has a solid business background with a strong interest in entrepreneurship and a passion towards business strategy. He began his professional journey with an obsession to grow Indonesia's digital economy.
Falah has mixed experience in managing corporate innovation programs from his previous teams, which were Digital Amoeba and Indigo Incubator & Accelerator within Telkom Indonesia. He is proficient in analyzing pre-seed to seed stage startups by conducting due diligence and regular performance monitoring, and also discovering potential startups in the tech ecosystems. Moreover, he also has a track record as a web-app product manager for Telkom Indonesia's network data management platform strengthened by AI.
Job Titles:
- Senior Marketing Communications Manager at GSMA Latin America
Florencia serves as Senior Marketing Communications Manager at GSMA Latin America, based in Buenos Aires. She is in charge of leading press, PR, social media and content development activities in the region, in close collaboration with the global PR team and all marketing teams across the organization.
Before joining the GSMA, Florencia worked as communications and training content coordinator at the Argentinean Ministry of Modernisation. She holds a degree in Communications from the University of Buenos Aires (UBA) and is currently studying to get a Masters degree in Content Management at Austral University.
Job Titles:
- Leader
- CEO, Ethio Telecom
Frehiwot Tamru is an influential, result-oriented leader who is known for her consistency and determination. She was appointed as a CEO of Ethio telecom, Africa's second largest telecom company, by H.E Dr. Abiy Ahmed, the Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia in 2018.
After her appointment as a CEO, she brought profound changes and a track record of success within the company throughout the consecutive four years. Under her competent and experienced leadership, Ethio telecom saw a 27.6 M growth in the subscriber base and registered a 21.5 billion Birr growth in revenue within the four years while slashing tariff by 40%- 50%.
Her leadership not only reduced tariffs to ensure affordability but also expanded 4G/LTE & 4G/LTE Advanced services in the capital city and over 136 cities outside of the capital with the aim to address network coverage gaps to ensure accessibility of telecom services.
Through her influence in challenging the status quo and policies, she was able to realize the first telecom-led mobile money service, "telebirr" in the country whose subscriber base reached 20.36 million and which transacted over 21.87 billion Birr just within a year after its launch.
Frehiwot is an innate leader who demonstrated her leadership capacity at an early age. She began her career as a programmer and system administrator at the former Ethiopian Telecommunications Corporation (ETC) and went up the ladder at the age of 26 to become the Chief Information Officer of ETC. Again, demonstrating her leadership skills at an early age, she became the deputy Chief Executive Officer of ETC in 2009. She holds an MBA from Open University, UK, a degree in Information System from Addis Ababa University and a diploma in Accounting.
Job Titles:
- Market Engagement Manager, Connected Society and Connected Women ( New Delhi )
Gopal Vittal - CEO, Managing Director
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer
- Managing Director
- CEO, Bharti Airtel Group
Gopal Vittal is currently the Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer (India & South Asia) of Bharti Airtel Limited. In his role as CEO, he is responsible for defining and delivering the business strategy and providing overall leadership for Airtel's India & South Asia operations.
Under the leadership of Mr. Vittal, Airtel had achieved a life-time high revenue market share. Airtel was recognized as the second most valuable brand in the country. In 2018, Airtel was also ranked 10th ‘Best Company to Work for' and the ‘Best Employer in Telecom' in India. In the last six years, he has strengthened the operation while driving transformation of the telco to be a strong digital services player.
Mr. Vittal was previously with Bharti Enterprises where he was the Group Director, Special Projects (April 2012 - Feb 2013). In this capacity, he worked towards formulating and supporting Airtel's International strategy and data expansion. He also held the post of Director, Marketing at Bharti Airtel (2006-08).
In addition, Mr. Vittal has also been with Hindustan Unilever for over a 20 years. He led several national and global assignments across sales, marketing and general management. In his last four years he was the Head of the US$ 3.5 Home and Personal Care Business driving accelerated growth from 5% to 15%.
Mr. Vittal is an alumnus of Madras Christian College and has completed his MBA from IIM, Kolkata.
Job Titles:
- Group CEO
- Group CEO, E
- Member of the Internet Governance Forum
Hatem Dowidar is the Group CEO of e&. He joined the Group in September 2015 as Group Chief Operating Officer and was appointed as Chief Executive Officer, International in March 2016.
Ever since he took the company's helm, Dowidar has spearheaded several ground-breaking strategic programmes that propelled the company's business growth to new heights across the 16 markets where it operates. As the company transformed into a global technology and investment conglomerate in February 2022, and despite the ever-changing business landscape, his astute brand stewardship has been the foundation for enhancing e&'s brand equity, enhancing employee experience, and adding value to stakeholders. Today, e& is the world's strongest telecom brand, the first in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region to achieve this recognition. Dowidar also features among the Elite List of Brand Guardians globally.
Under his guidance, the company is also recognised as the most valuable publicly-traded company and, according to Forbes, also the most valuable listed telecommunications service provider in the GCC region. A highly skilled strategist and visionary, Dowidar has been instrumental in ushering in a new phase of strategic partnerships and key collaborations with global industry leaders such as Microsoft and Meta that will digitally empower societies.
Prior to joining the Group, Dowidar was the Group Chief of Staff for Vodafone Group based in London, reporting to the Vodafone Group CEO. He brings 30 years of experience in multinational companies and more than 24 years of these within the telecommunications industry across various leadership positions in multinational companies.
He initially joined Vodafone Egypt in 1999, served as Marketing Director (CMO) and later became the CEO of Vodafone Egypt from 2009 - 2014, where he steered the business growth with benchmark profitability in challenging and competitive environments.
Dowidar has a long track record of achievements in the various leadership positions he held at Vodafone Group and its subsidiaries, including Group Core Services Director, CEO of Vodafone Malta, CEO of Partner Markets with partnerships covering over 45 markets and Regional Director Emerging Markets. He also has extensive Corporate Governance experience through his representation as Chairman and Board Member in several Corporate Boards within and outside the telecommunications industry.
Dowidar began his career in AEG/Deutsche Aerospace (Daimler Benz Group) in Egypt, before moving into marketing at Procter & Gamble, where he held several managerial roles.
He is currently a board member of Etihad Etisalat Company (Mobily), Maroc Telecom, Etisalat
On a global industry level, Dowidar is a member of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) panel, a multistakeholder group for policies and practices relating to the Internet and technologies. Convened by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the IGF facilitates knowledge exchange on how to maximise Internet opportunities and address risks and challenges. Since its foundation, the IGF has identified a wide range of key issues to be addressed by the international community and has shaped policy decisions related to the Internet and technologies throughout the world. He is also the only Arab member from the MENA region on the Leadership panel, which currently consists of 15 members.
The GSMA is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Her Majesty The Queen. She lived a remarkable life, and we pay tribute to her ...
Job Titles:
- His Excellency President
- President of the Republic of Rwanda, to Attend the First in - Person Mobile World Congress Africa ( MWC .
His Excellency Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of Rwanda, to Attend the First In-Person Mobile World Congress Africa (MWC ...
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions
- Senior Vice President - Technology
- Senior Vice President, Network CTO, at & T Group
Igal Elbaz is Senior Vice President -Technology & Network Services, Network Chief Technology Officer, AT&T Services, Inc. Igal oversees the global mobile and fixed network technology direction for AT&T, which includes the design of the company's 5G infrastructure, AT&T's software-defined networking (SDN) initiative, protecting and monetizing AT&T's intellectual property portfolio, and network software automation platforms. His responsibilities include network architecture, standards, planning, development, testing and certification of infrastructure and device technologies.
Igal's past leadership roles at AT&T included senior vice president of Engineering and Operations, where he was responsible for engineering and operations for AT&T's mobility and voice core networks, common IP backbone network, technology space engineering and management, transport and cloud engineering as well as global monitoring and surveillance of AT&T's network, tier 3 advanced technical support, business continuity planning and AT&T's Global Technology Operations Center which provides centralized command operations. Prior to that, Igal was senior vice president of Wireless and Access Technology; where he was responsible for wireless and wireline access network architecture, design and technology roadmap, including radio access network, subscriber product engineering, Network AI, 5G and LTE mobility, voice core network functions and driving industry standards and the device specification, testing and implementation program.
Igal also led ecosystem and innovation through AT&T's Foundry and his focus on understanding and leveraging the startup community. Through his many assignments, Igal brings strong leadership and key experiences to deliver advanced access technologies and innovative products and services with speed and agility.
Igal serves as Chairman of the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) Board of Governors. ATIS delivers standards and solutions to advance ICT industry transformation.
Igal has an MBA from the College of Management Academic Studies and his Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Business Management from Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel.
He lives in Dallas, Texas with his wife and two sons.
Job Titles:
- Subgrant Compliance Manager
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- British Telecom Director
- Head of Public Policy, APAC
Jeanette is Head of Public Policy, APAC at the GSMA. Her role entails providing public policy support for mobile network operators on telecoms, data privacy, spectrum policy, IoT, 5G and competition policy.
Before joining the GSMA Jeanette ran a Telecoms Media and Technology consultancy firm where she led a wide range of projects including development of fixed broadband strategies and business plans for mobile operators across Asia: China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Macau, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea Sri Lanka and Thailand.
Jeanette is a former British Telecom Director where she held senior roles in the areas of strategy, portfolio management, product development, Merger& Acquisition and IT.
Jeanette graduated from Loughborough University in the UK with a BSc (Hons) in Management Sciences. She is a Sloan Fellow with an MSc from London Business School and has a post graduate Diploma in Marketing from the UK-based Chartered Institute of Marketing.
Job Titles:
- Chief Operating Officer, MTN Group
Jens has extensive operational experience in the mobile telecoms sector, with his last senior role being as CEO of Vodafone Germany between 2012 and 2015. Jens has extensive experience in the consumer business, as well as the area of large scale transformation in a convergent operation.
Jens joined the MTN Group in January 2017 in the role of Group Chief Operating Officer.
Job Titles:
- Director and Head of North East Asia
- DXAF Community Head, Strategic Engagement Director, Head of North East Asia
With over 20 years of research and consulting experience in the ICT and Telecoms industry, especially in North East Asia, Johnny has executed and directed major research and consulting studies for MNOs, vendors and government/regulatory bodies across a wide range of areas. Prior to joining the GSMA, he worked as Regional Head/Managing Director for ICT global research and consulting companies specializing in Telecoms & ICT and key industry verticals, respectively for North East Asia.
Johnny completed studies in Science and Business/Marketing at the University of Melbourne and Swinburne University of Technology, respectively and has also completed postgraduate studies in Economics and Applied Information Systems.
Job Titles:
- Chief Regulatory Officer
- Chief Regulatory Officer at the GSMA, Sai
- President of the GSMA Foundation
John Giusti, Chief Regulatory Officer at the GSMA, said: "In an increasingly digital world, Europe's future economic success and social ...
As Chief Regulatory Officer for the GSMA, John Giusti is responsible for leading the organisation's public policy and industry advocacy agenda with governments, regulators and international institutions, as well as overseeing the work of the GSMA Mobile for Development Foundation and engaging with key development organisations worldwide.
Prior to joining the GSMA in 2011, John spent 17 years at the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC), working in a variety of capacities. Most recently, he served as chief of staff and senior policy advisor to Commissioner Michael Copps, where he provided legal, strategic and policy support to the Commissioner on all major agency actions, including the implementation of the National Broadband Plan.
He also previously ran the FCC's International Bureau, where he managed the agency's relationships with its foreign counterparts and served as its chief negotiator at meetings of the International Telecommunication Union, the Inter-American Telecommunications Commission and other multilateral organisations.
John was educated in the United States, earning a Juris Doctorate from Boston University School of Law and a Bachelor of Science in Telecommunications from the University of Florida. He has been a member of the Massachusetts bar since 1994.
John Hoffman is CEO and Director for GSMA Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the GSMA. In this role, John oversees various lines of business, including the GSMA's portfolio of award-winning trade shows and conferences, its online, print and broadcast media properties, industry research services and a range of network managed services. John brings more than 25 years' experience to the GSMA.
Prior to his current role in GSMA Ltd., John was CEO and Director of fastmobile, Inc., a supplier of software-based network operator solutions. Before fastmobile, he was the President, CEO and Director of Roamware, Inc., a global provider of voice and data roaming solutions.
In addition, John has held executive-level positions at several mobile telecommunications companies including BellSouth, Pocket Communications and SONOFON. He has also served as an independent mobile industry consultant, leading projects with the GSMA, BellSouth, Palm and PCSOne, among others.
John is a member of the Future Trends Forum, Bankinter's global think task focused on issues impacting Spanish society and businesses. He serves on the GSMA Ltd. Board of Directors as well as the Board of the Mobile World Capital Barcelona Foundation, and is the author of the "Wireless Evolution Insider" by the GSMA as well as "GPRS Demystified", published by McGraw-Hill Professional.
John holds Bachelors and Masters degrees in Architecture from the University of Michigan, a Masters of Business degree from the University of Phoenix and is a licensed architect in the state of Colorado.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- CEO, Telefónica Group
Mr. Álvarez-Pallete has a degree in Economics from the Complutense University of Madrid and he also studied Economics at the Free University of Brussels, in Belgium. He holds an International Management Programme from IPADE an Advance Research Degree from the Complutense University of Madrid.
In February 1999 he joined the Telefónica Group as Chief Financial Officer of Telefónica Internacional S.A.U., and in September of the same year he became Chief Financial Officer of Telefónica S.A. In July 2002, he was appointed Executive Chairman of Telefónica Internacional S.A.; in July 2006, General Manager of Telefónica Latinoamérica; and in March 2009 Chairman of Telefónica Latinoamérica. In September 2011 he was named Executive Chairman of Telefónica Europe, and in September 2012 he was appointed Chief Operating Officer of Telefónica S.A.
Since April 8th 2016, he is Chairman & CEO of Telefónica S.A and he joined the board of directors in July 2006. Since March 2019 he is member of the Advisory Council of SEAT, S.A.
He began his professional career at Arthur Young Auditors in 1987, before joining Benito & Monjardín/Kidder, Peabody & Co. in 1988. In 1995 he joined the Compañía Valenciana de Cementos Portland (CEMEX) as head of the Investor Relations and Analysis Department. In 1996, he was promoted to Chief Financial Officer in Spain, and in 1998 to Chief Administration and Finance Officer of the CEMEX Group Indonesia and to a member of the Board of CEMEX Asia Ltd.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- Head of Asia Pacific
Julian is the Head of Asia Pacific for the GSMA, leading a highly experienced cross-functional team to advance the impact, growth, and sustainability of digital economies by collaboration between the mobile industry, policymakers, and ecosystem. He is a global telecommunications executive with over 20 years of commercial and marketing experience across Wholesale, Business, Regulatory, Policy and Digital Transformation. He has pioneered new digital partnerships and business units in mature and emerging markets across Africa, Europe, Australia and Asia with industry leaders including Vodafone, MTN and Ooredoo. As an advisor to management executive teams and Boards, he has extensive insight and relationships to support collaboration and delivery of industry alignment.
He has been recognized for his leadership in digital innovation, digital women, health and agriculture services with industry awards and grants.
Julian has degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Law from Australia.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, China Telecom
Mr. Li Jun is a principal-level senior engineer and a Doctor of Engineering from Wuhan University with a major in photogrammetry and remote sensing. He is now the Vice President of China Telecommunications Corporation Limited. Previously, Mr. Li served as Deputy Chief Engineer of China Electronics Information Industry Development Research Institute (CCID), and Deputy Chief of the Department of Planning, Science and Technology, Chief of the Department of Planning, Science and Technology (Office of the Science and Technology Commission), Head of the General Office and Head of the Department of General Administration of China Electronics Corporation.
Kaan Terzioglu is an internationally acclaimed leader in telecommunications and the Group Co-Chief Executive Officer of VEON Group that serves more than 200 million customers in 9 countries. He transforms telecoms companies into agents of digital transformation in the broader economy,creating new areas of growth built on mobile connectivity and maximizing the value that the industry as a whole delivers.
As VEON's Group Co-CEO, a position that he has taken over on 1 March2020 following earlier roles as a VEON Board member and VEON Co-COO,
Kaan Terzioglu leads the executive teams of 9 operating companies around the world. VEON Group operating companies in Russia, Pakistan, Ukraine, Algeria, Bangladesh, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Georgia provide their customers with connectivity and digital solutions.
Before joining VEON Group, Kaan Terzioglu was the Group CEO at Turkcell, where he created the "Digital Operator" model.
Job Titles:
- Deputy General Counsel / Director of Legal - Global Programs, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Job Titles:
- Head of Strategic Engagement, APAC
Kevin has over 20 years of experience in the telecommunications sector working with various mobile operators regionally in APAC. He has held multiple senior positions with the last being the Chief Operations Officer of Tune Talk. He has worked with large mobile operators like Maxis, Celcom, Indosat Ooredoo (Indonesia), Robi (Bangladesh) as well as smaller startups like UMobile, P1, Seatel (Cambodia) and Tune Talk. He was crucial in the end to end service launch of 4G and content services for the large mobile operators stated above. He has both commercial and technical experience in the various roles he has held during his tenure.
Kevin has a BSc Physics Degree (Honors) from the National University of Malaysia.
Job Titles:
- Chief Marketing Officer
- Global Leader
As Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at the GSMA, Lara Dewar is responsible for driving the Association's global marketing and communications strategy to support and enable business success for the GSMA and its members.
Lara is a global leader with over 20 years of knowledge in industries shaping our world. She is motivated by the trust bestowed upon marketing and communications professionals to tell compelling stories that spark the imagination. Since joining the GSMA in January 2020 as Global Head of Communications, Lara has successfully shaped the organisation's communication strategy during a tumultuous time and comes to the seat with extensive CMO experience. From financial services and energy to charity and telecoms, Lara has applied her strategic and collaborative approach to leadership to drive transformation in its truest sense.
Before joining the GSMA, Lara worked at World Vision where she held positions including Chief Marketing & Development Officer and Partnership Leader. In this role, Lara was responsible for reputation management across a $2.5 billion-dollar enterprise operating in 100 countries with over 38,000 employees. She has also held executive positions at Crossroads Media Group, Jameson Bank, Direct Energy, and Thomas Cook Group. The breadth of Lara's career means that she brings a holistic understanding of how businesses work and the function of marketing and communications in driving growth.
Lara holds a B.A. degree in English & Women's Studies from the University of Western Ontario.
Job Titles:
- Policy & Regulatory Manager
Larissa serves as Policy & Regulatory Manager at GSMA Latin America, based in Brazil. She supports members through assessing regional regulatory developments and engaging with policymakers, regulators and international organisations.
Before joining the GSMA, Larissa held various positions in consultancy firms, industry associations and mobile operators. She has a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from the University of Brasilia and postgraduate studies in Digital Law and Political Advisory. She is fluent in Portuguese, English and Spanish.
Job Titles:
- Head of Public Policy of GSMA Europe
- Head of Public Policy, Europe
Laszlo Toth is the Head of Public Policy of GSMA Europe. Laszlo leads the public policy team in Brussels, overseeing all the advocacy activities of GSMA Europe and representing European mobile operators on a broad range of policy and regulatory matters. He works closely with members to facilitate coordinated advocacy efforts at the EU level in order to create a policy environment that maximizes the mobile industry's ability to invest in infrastructure and drive economic growth and social development.
Laszlo started his professional career working at telecoms operators. Prior to joining GSMA in 2011, he spent nine years at the Hungarian public administration, including spells at the Ministry responsible for ICT and at the national telecoms regulator. Laszlo has an MSc. in economics and holds a degree in computer sciences.
Job Titles:
- Project Coordinator for APAC
- Project Coordinator, APAC, GSMA ( India )
Latika Sahni is the Project Coordinator for APAC at the GSMA, providing support for the Public Policy team.
Before joining the GSMA, Latika worked with United Nations Industrial Development Organization as a Project Assistant towards inclusive sustainable industrial development in collaboration with the Ministry of Science and Technology - Department of Science and Technology. In this role she conducted research to assess innovation practices in large, MSMEs to incorporate Industry 4.0 technologies and to empower self-reliant India. She has undertaken market research and designed an outreach program to create awareness about inclusive industrial development among industries-supporting domestic technology development, research, and product or process innovation.
Latika holds a Bachelor of Commerce honors from the University of Delhi and an MBA in marketing.
Job Titles:
- Business Manager
- Business Manager, APAC ( Hong Kong )
Lilian Hung is the APAC Business Manager for the GSMA, reporting to Head of Asia Pacific. She is based in Hong Kong.
Prior to joining the GSMA, Lilian has many years of experiences with a number of MNC verticals including Red Bull, Warner Bros, and Ericsson.
Lilian holds a Bachelor Degree of Business Management from La Trobe University Australia and Diploma of Human Resources Management/Business Administration from the Hong Kong Baptist University.
Job Titles:
- Director, Esade Center for Social Impact
Job Titles:
- Member of the Compliance Team
- Head of Finance & Compliance
Lorena joined the GSMA in 2012 and is currently leading the Finance and Compliance team for the Foundation. Lorena and her team manage a portfolio of ten programmes funded by seven donors including the US, UK and Swedish government in addition to from public and private Foundations. In her previous role, Lorena was the Chief Business Officer at EARTH University Foundation Inc. where she handled the compliance of the whole portfolio of donors including US Government, Public and Private Foundations. Originally from Caracas Venezuela, Lorena moved to the US and into the Not for Profit world focusing on Finance and Compliance of grants with a significant focus on US government grants from USAID, ASHA and Department of Energy. Lorena has a bachelor degree in Business & Social Sciences - Finance / Accounting from The Andrés Bello Catholic University in Caracas Venezuela. Lorena enjoys volunteering in her spare time and she recently accepted to be part of the Board of Directors at The Children's Heart Foundation - Georgia Chapter as Treasurer.
Job Titles:
- Director Public Policy, Europe
Lotte leads the public policy initiatives on the regulatory files in GSMA Europe, coordinating activities to advance the members' positions on a range of topics including net neutrality, roaming, cyber security and the wider debate on a proportionate framework to sustain long term investments in connectivity across Europe.
Lotte has broad experiences from the telecommunications sector working with regulators and policymakers at national, European and international level. She was heading up Telenor's Representative Office for 6 years where she positioned Telenor in various EU policy debates besides focusing on international relations between the EU and Asia. She also spent 3 years at Telenor's headquarter in Oslo supporting Telenor Group in its relationship with international stakeholders.
Before joining GSMA's Brussels Office, Lotte was employed by a large Danish bank where she implemented new financial regulation as a senior project manager.
Lotte is a Danish native and holds a master of agricultural economics from University of Copenhagen.
Job Titles:
- Chartered Accountant
- Chief Financial Officer
- CFO, GSMA Sustainability
- Foundation Treasurer
Louise Easterbrook is Chief Financial Officer of the GSMA. In this role, Louise is responsible for overseeing the business and financial performance of the GSMA, leading the company's corporate services functions, including finance, legal, HR, IT and facilities.
Before joining the GSMA in September 2014, Louise was Regional Financial Controller, Africa for Vodafone Group. Louise joined Vodafone as Investor Relations Executive, acting as the liaison between Vodafone and the financial community.
From 1996 to 2006, Louise held a series of positions at Cable & Wireless plc., including Group Director of Investor Relations, Director Corporate Finance and Head of Group Planning, Reporting and Analysis.
Louise is a qualified Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) degree from the University of Birmingham.
Lucas is the Head of Latin America for the GSMA, leading a highly experienced cross-functional team to advance the impact, growth, and sustainability of digital economies by collaboration between the mobile industry, policymakers, technology ecosystem and international organizations.
He is a telecommunications executive with over 15 years of commercial, operational, regulatory and external affairs experience working for multinational companies in the digital ecosystem.
He leads the advocacy initiatives, contributing with new ideas and analysis to the regional policy dialogue at a time when emerging digital technologies and widespread broadband connectivity are reshaping society and the economy. His areas of responsibility include securing critical spectrum resources for mobile, promoting best practices in matters such as regulation, taxation, security and privacy, as well as fostering digital empowerment for citizens.
Lucas holds a Master in Business Administration (MBA) and has a degree in Telecommunications Engineering.
Job Titles:
- Senior Policy and External Affairs Manager at GSMA for Latin America
Lucrecia currently serves as Senior Policy and External Affairs Manager at GSMA for Latin America, based in Argentina. She has more than 10 years of experience in public policy and external affairs, both in the private and public sectors (Deputy Chamber of Argentina and Buenos Aires Senate). She focuses on regulatory modernization, competition policy, digital inclusion, tax policy, presidential agendas for digital transformation, and external affairs. She also leads a regulatory interest group with telecommunication operators, with more than 180 members from 18 countries across Latin America.
Lucrecia holds a degree in Political Science and a Master's degree in international affairs and is trained in internet law and ICTs, telecom regulation, and future technologies.
Job Titles:
- President and Group CEO, KDDI
Makoto Takahashi was named President which is the CEO position, Representative Director of KDDI Corporation (KDDI) in April 2018. Concurrently, he retains his position as a Member of the Board, which he became in June 2007. Mr. Takahashi was an Executive Vice President, a General Manager for Value Business Sector and Corporate Strategy Planning Division from June 2016. He was named a Senior Vice President, General Manager for Group Strategy Sector in June 2010. He was an Associate Senior Vice President, General Manager for Consumer Business Sector from June 2007. He became a Vice President, General Manager for Content Division and Content Business Planning Department in Solution Business Sector in April 2003. Mr. Takahashi entered DDI, former KDDI, in April 1984, after graduating from Yokohama National University with a bachelor's degree in engineering.
As Antitrust Counsel Maria provides advice and counsel to GSMA departments on all aspects of antitrust law and policy. Additionally, Maria follows antitrust policy and enforcement developments in the world with a particular focus in Europe and the European Union Institutions.
Before joining the GSMA in 2017, Maria worked for a Public Affairs consultancy in Brussels, where she developed and implemented public affairs, communications and public relations campaigns for clients in the technology, competition and social affairs sectors. Maria moved to Brussels in 2012 to work for the European Commission Competition department and prior to that worked as a competition and EU lawyer for an international law firm in Madrid (Spain).
Maria has a Bachelor degree in Law, a Bachelor degree in Economics and a Masters Degree in EU and Competition law by Carlos III University of Madrid. She is a native Spanish speaker, fluent in English and Italian and has good knowledge of German and French.
Job Titles:
- President & Member of Board of Directors, Reliance Jio
- President of Reliance
Mathew Oommen as President of Reliance, leads Jio's Network, Strategy, and Service Platforms enabling India's digital transformation to affordable and scalable broadband connectivity for the creation and adoption of digital services leveraging cloud centric open source platforms disaggregating hardware, software and services. Mr Oommen has been part of Jio since the beginning of its ambitious green field all-IP network build.
At Reliance Jio, Mr Oommen personally leads technology and product development. His focus has been driving innovation across network, applications, devices, and systems, having successfully implemented new technologies and solutions enabling industry-leading innovation across Devices and Applications, including Automation, Big Data Analytics and Software Defined Platforms across Jio's Network and Business Operations. All of these have become key building blocks in transforming the industry as a whole and have set the stage for India's rapid inclusive growth in digital services adoption across verticals and segments.
Prior to Reliance, Mr Oommen was Chief Technology Officer of Sprint, responsible for network and technology development, systems architecture, device development, including leading the M2M/Connected Car Service development. He has also held executive positions at Williams Communications/Wiltel and MCI Worldcom/Verizon.
Mats Granryd is Director General of the GSMA and a Member of its Board. In this role, he leads the GSMA in supporting its global membership through a range of industry programmes, advocacy initiatives and industry-convening events.
Mats is a strong proponent of sustainability and led the mobile industry in becoming the first sector to broadly commit to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2016. He is now spearheading initiatives to amplify and accelerate the mobile industry's impact on all 17 of the SDGs, across both developed and developing markets.
Mats serves on the Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development, which is focused on leveraging ICT and broadband-based technologies for sustainable development. Within the Commission, he chairs the Working Group on Digital Gender Divide to address the digital gender divide and foster the equal inclusion of women and girls in broadband access and use. Mats is a leader with The B Team, a not-for-profit initiative formed by a global group of business leaders to catalyse a better way of doing business, for the wellbeing of people and the planet. From 2016 to 2018, Mats was also a Commissioner on the Business & Sustainable Development Commission, working with CEOs across many industries to make a powerful business case for achieving a sustainable, inclusive economy.
Mats brings to the GSMA a wealth of experience and a proven track record of success in the highly dynamic mobile industry. Prior to joining the GSMA in 2016, Mats was President and CEO of Tele2, one of Europe's fastest-growing telecom operators with more than 16 million customers across nine countries.
Previously, he spent 15 years in a variety of roles at Ericsson, most recently as Head of Northern Europe and Central Asia. While at Ericsson, he also led the North West Europe, India, CDMA and North Africa units, as well as the global customer accounts for Vodafone and Bharti.
Mats holds a M.Sc. from the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm.
Job Titles:
- Head of Mobile for Development
Job Titles:
- Member of the Compliance Team
- Senior Financial Accountant
Michael joined the GSMA Foundation in 2016 with 5+ years of state government and private sector experience, specialising in financial reporting, budgeting, comprehensive accounting analysis, and finance. In his previous role, Michael was a Financial Reporting Analyst at the State Accounting Office where he assisted in the preparation of the financial statements/footnotes of the Comprehensive Annual Report (CAFR) and provided analytical support for key financial reporting decision making. Michael holds a Bachelor's degree in Accounting from the University of Georgia.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Chief Technology and Innovation Officer, Orange Group
Michaël Trabbia is a member of the Executive Committee as Chief Technology and Innovation Officer for the Orange Group, overseeing the Orange Innovation division.
Michaël Trabbia joined Orange in January 2011 and held several senior positions within the company: CEO of Orange Belgium, Chief of Staff for the Chairman and CEO of Orange, and Secretary of the Group's Executive Committee and Group Senior VP for Corporate Public Affairs.
Before joining Orange, he was Deputy Head of Cabinet of the Minister for Industry and Head of "Industrial Sectors Policy", Head of Strategy and Development at TDF, Advisor for "ICT and Europe" to the cabinet of the Minister for Regional Development and Advisor to the cabinet of the Minister for European Affairs. He began his career in 2001 with the French regulator ARCEP, where he was responsible for the attribution and regulation of mobile licences.
Michaël Trabbia is a graduate of École polytechnique and Télécom ParisTech and holds a Master of Advanced Studies in Industrial Economics.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President and Group CEO, Telenor
Mr Sigve Brekke, born in 1959, has been President and CEO of Telenor Group since August 2015.
Telenor Group is one of the world's major mobile operators with 180 million mobile subscriptions in 9 countries across the Nordic region and Asia. Prior to assuming his current role, Mr Brekke served as Executive Vice President and Head of Region Asia. He was a key driver and shaper of making Telenor Group a leading force in key Asian markets, and he has served as CEO of Telenor-controlled mobile network operators in Thailand (dtac) and India (Uninor/Telenor India).
Prior to joining Telenor Sigve Brekke had a political career in the Norwegian Labour Party. He served as State Secretary of Defence in Norway from 1993 to 1996. Mr Brekke holds a Master of Public Administration degree from John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He is married, has three children and resides in Oslo.
Job Titles:
- Executive Vice President of China Mobile Communications Group Co
- Executive Vice President, China Mobile Communications Group
Mr. Gao Tongqing is Executive Vice President of China Mobile Communications Group Co., Ltd., a Director and Vice President of China Mobile Communication Co., Ltd.. Mr. Gao previously served as Chairman and General Manager of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Telecom Company, Chairman and General Manager of China Telecom Jiangsu branch, Vice President of China Telecommunications Corporation, and Executive Director and Executive Vice President of China Telecom Corporation Limited. He graduated from the Changchun Institute of Posts and Telecommunications with a major in telecommunications engineering, and received a doctorate degree in business administration from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Mr. Gao is a professor-level senior engineer with extensive experience in management and the telecommunications industry. He also serves as a member of National Advisory Committee of experts on Internet Plus, Vice President of Alliance of Industrial Internet, and Vice President of Internet Society of China.
Job Titles:
- Senior Market Engagement Manager, Digital Utilities ( Islamabad )
Arham holds expertise in building and digitally transforming small organisations to scale, leveraging his experience in government, banking, advocacy, strategy and operations. Prior to joining the GSMA, Arham served as the Head of Digital Lending and Government Solutions for Ant Group in Pakistan. He was also the founding lead of the Digital Transformation and Strategy vertical at the Ministry of IT and Telecommunications in Pakistan. Arham also had the honor to represent Pakistan as the lead for the Government of Pakistan at UNCTAD working closely with WTO to build a one-window technology solution to monitor global trade. Arham currently serves on the Citi-PPAF Jury Board for microfinance grants and is an active member in the Digital Pakistan movement. He also holds the honor of being the core author of the Pakistan Digital Policy which was adopted in 2017 by the Government of Pakistan.
Arham holds a B.A in International Relations/Economic from Tufts University and a Masters of Science in Engineering Management from Columbia University in New York. He is also a certified sustainability consultant with the U.S Green Building Council and holds numerous certificates in fintech specialisations from the Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania.
Job Titles:
- Senior Policy Manager, South Asia
Natasha is the Senior Policy Manager, South Asia for the GSMA.
Prior to joining the GSMA, she was a senior manager with a consulting firm, Ernst & Young's Policy group. Natasha is a lawyer who has worked globally on technology regulation and innovation policies. She has consulted for the UN Development Program, World Trade Organization, the Economist Intelligence Unit as well as different governments. She was appointed as a fellow at Hoover Institution, Stanford University, USA and is the recipient of the Thomas Edison Innovation Fellowship at George Mason University, USA. Her writings on innovation policy and regulation issues have been published widely.
Natasha has a LL.M from George Washington University, USA and has studied Economics for Competition Law at King's College, UK.
Job Titles:
- Outreach Director, Americas - GSMA Services
Nicolás currently works as Outreach Director, Americas, with the global team of GSMA Services, based in Buenos Aires. His focus is on developing these services in the region, collaborating with members and commercial organisations in the mobile ecosystem to assist with uptake and use.
He has extensive experience in global corporations, the digital industry and telecommunications. Before joining the GSMA, he was Regional Manager of New Business Development at Yahoo! Hispanic Americas and Strategy and Innovation Manager at Telecom Personal Argentina, where he headed new services development and innovation efforts. Nicolás has a degree in Advertising and Marketing from the University of Business and Social Studies (UCES) in Argentina and was awarded a medal of honour for the best grade average.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Compliance Team
- Finance & Compliance Business Partner
Oduntan joined the GSMA team in 2018 and is currently the Foundation's Grant Reporting Specialist. His primary responsibility includes the reviewing of all Grants to ensure reporting compliance standards are maintained. Oduntan's portfolio of Grants ranges from various private and Government donors, which funds for over 10 international programs. In addition, he is a member of the GSMA Financial Reporting system developer team.
Originally from Grenada, (West Indies), Oduntan came to the US and received his Bachelor's degree in Accounting from DeVry University. For over 10 years before GSMA, his professional focus has been in humanitarian causes. He was the Private Revenue Accounting Analyst for C.A.R.E (Cooperative for Assistance and Relieve Everywhere), Senor Accountant for The Martin Luther King Center, and Regional Accountant for the Salvation Army Georgia Headquarters.
In his spare time, Oduntan heads a local chapter of The Columbian Squires Youth Organization, a regional, non-profit organization for young men ages 10-18.
Job Titles:
- Director Communications & Marketing, Americas
Paula joined the GSMA in 2014 with the purpose of bringing together the mobile industry's contribution to SDGs and the Latin American government's social objectives in the We Care campaign. In her current position as Regional Marketing Director for Latin America, she has also represented the GSMA as Topic Chair for Digital Inclusion theme within the W20 (Women 20) group in Argentina, which advised the G20 member states on issues around gender equality and the economic empowerment of women. Before joining the GSMA, Paula held progressive communications and marketing positions in companies such as British Telecom (formerly known as Comsat Lockheed Martin), Pamar Jacques Whitford, and Reader ´s Digest and worked for ProMéxico, the Mexican federal government agency responsible for attracting foreign investment. She has also been a teacher and an independent consultant. Paula holds a BA in Public Relations and postgraduate studies in marketing communications and digital transformation.
Job Titles:
- Head of GSMA Intelligence As
Pierantonio Rizzo leads the public policy activities on Digital Economy and Society matters at the GSMA Europe. In his role of Director EU Affairs, Pierantonio is responsible for Platform economy, Data, Artificial Intelligence, Consumer policy and Disinformation. He also contributes to the work of the European Commission' stakeholders expert group on the REFIT of Consumer law.
Prior to joining the GSMA in 2017, Pierantonio worked at the European Parliament for an Italian MEP, where he followed the activities of IMCO and AFET Committees. He began his career as policy analyst at Rohde Public Policy, a public affairs consultancy firm.
Pierantonio holds a Masters of European Affairs from the Catholic University of Paris and a LLM from the University of Bologna, during which he had an exchange program with the Université Paris II Panthéon-Assas. Pierantonio speaks Italian, English, French and is currently learning Spanish.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of TIM
- Group CEO and General Manager, Telecom Italia
Pietro Labriola is the Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of TIM, the latter position already assumed since November 26, 2021.
In Brazil he headed, from 2015, TIM as Chief Operating Officer and then, from 2019, as Chief Executive Officer leading the growth by consolidating the development path with the acquisition of Oi and the 5G licenses, giving a decisive contribution to the digital development of one of the most vital countries.
In the TIM Group since 2001, he held increasingly senior roles in the field of Marketing for the corporate and consumer segments of fixed and mobile telephony services.
In 2006, furthermore, he was appointed Managing Director at Matrix and in 2013 he assumed the responsibility of the Business Transformation office.
Before joining the TIM Group, since 1996 Labriola worked in Infostrada, at first as Head of Business Development and then as Marketing Director, and previously held positions in Boston Consulting Group, Cable & Wireless and France Telecom.
Pietro Labriola has a degree in Economics and Commerce from the University of Bari and a Master in Management of Innovation and Technologies from Tecnopolis, Scientific and Technological Park of Bari.
Job Titles:
- Senior Finance & Compliance Business Partner
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, GSMA Innovation Fund ( New Delhi )
Radhika has joined the GSMA M4D Utilities team as a Market Engagement Manager to manage, facilitate and support mobile-based innovations in energy, water and sanitation across the Asia-Pacific region. She will support the programme by managing select Innovation Fund grantees, share key learnings & insights from grantees and map out industry trends so as to understand and showcase how the mobile industry can support commercially viable energy, water and sanitation services for the underserved.
Prior to GSMA, Radhika has worked in healthcare consulting at IPE Global, New Delhi and telecommunications at Vodafone UK, England. She has built expertise in healthcare consulting, private sector led sustainable social enterprises, mobile product pricing and large-scale fixed & mobile commercial solutions.
Radhika graduated in Economics from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai and holds an MSc in Economics from the University of Warwick, United Kingdom. She speaks fluent Hindi and English.
Job Titles:
- Mobile for Development Director, APAC ( Mumbai )
Job Titles:
- Global Head of IoT, Identity and Big Data at GSMA Answers Questions on Industry City and What Delegates Can Look .
Job Titles:
- Board Member of MasterCard Incorporated
- Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer for Verizon
Rima Qureshi is executive vice president and chief strategy officer for Verizon. She is responsible for development and implementation of Verizon's overall corporate strategy, business development, partnerships, new business incubation, strategic investments and acquisitions.
Before joining Verizon in November 2017, Qureshi was president and CEO of Ericsson North America. She has extensive experience in successfully managing various business segments, including sales, product management, operations and research and development. She also has extensive experience in acquisitions and integration.
Before becoming president and CEO of Ericsson North America in 2016, she was Ericsson's chief strategy officer and head of mergers and acquisitions. Her more than two decades of leadership experience in the mobile communications industry include more than 15 years of global experience.
Qureshi joined Ericsson in 1993 and was a vice president there since 2000. In 2010 she was named senior vice president of Ericsson's CDMA Mobile Systems Group, and she assumed additional responsibilities as senior vice president of strategic projects in 2013. She also served as chairman of Ericsson's Northern Europe, Russia, Central Asia group, and chairman of Ericsson's Modem division before becoming chief strategy officer.
Rima is currently a board member of MasterCard Incorporated and GSMA, the global telecom industry association. She also serves as an international advisory board member of McGill University. She has significant experience working with the humanitarian sector and various United Nations agencies.
She earned both her undergraduate and master's degrees from McGill University in Montreal, and is fluent in both English and French.
Rita de Castro has 15 years' experience in European public and regulatory affairs, with a strong focus on the digital and telecom sectors, and a mix of international private sector and public sector experience.
Rita worked in the European Commission Directorate General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology (DG CONNECT). She was EU Affairs Manager for Hutchison Europe (Three Group). Having also worked for a consultancy specialising in European public and regulatory affairs advising FTSE 100 clients, Rita has extensive experience in the sector.
Rita holds a Master in European Political & Administrative Studies from the College of Europe. She graduated from Lisbon Nova University. A Portuguese native, she is also fluent in English, French and Spanish.
Job Titles:
- Certified Public Accountant
- CEO, Telecom Argentina
Roberto D. Nobile is a Certified Public Accountant with a degree from the Universidad de Buenos Aires and an AMP (Advanced Management Program) at Harvard Business School. With broad experience in the telecommunications and media industry, since January 1st 2020 he is CEO at Telecom. Prior to this position, since May 2016 he was the Company´s COO in charge of Marketing, Sales and Operations. In October 2006, he joined Cablevisión, where he worked for 10 years, as COO and Deputy Managing Director. Earlier in his career, Roberto was part of the Arthur Andersen staff; and later worked at Honeywell as South Regional Controller (Brazil, Argentina and Chile). In 1997, he was CFO of Arte Gráfico Editorial Argentino S.A. Roberto was born on September 27, 1967.
Job Titles:
- Finance & Compliance Business Partner
Job Titles:
- Senior Marketing Manager
- Marketing Director, Europe
As Senior Marketing Manager, Ruta is heading marketing and communications activities and partnership management in Europe, Russia, and CIS countries. In her role, she collaborates closely with colleagues from the regional team, Industry Programmes, Advocacy Initiatives, and the Mobile 360 Series team to create and implement region-specific marketing campaigns.
Before to joining the GSMA in 2017, Ruta was responsible for communications and outreach activities at the European Internet Forum (EIF), a high-level platform bringing together members of the European Parliament, tech business leaders and relevant stakeholders to discuss the future of digital/tech/mobile in the EU. Prior roles on her CV include working in the European Commission's external communications team and within the advertising and banking sectors in Lithuania.
Ruta holds a Master's degree in Marketing and International Commerce from Vytautas Magnus University and a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Marketing from Kaunas University of Technology (Lithuania).
Job Titles:
- Country Lead, Digital Transformation, Pakistan ( Islamabad )
Saira is working as the Country Lead Digital Transformation for GSMA1 in Pakistan. She focuses on the promotion and execution of the GSMA's global programmes and advocacy initiatives at the country level, as well as managing and delivering regional priorities defined by its members through GSMA governance bodies. Her focus is to advance the impact, growth, and sustainability of digital economies by collaboration between the mobile industry, policymakers, and ecosystem.
Saira is a telecommunication & project management executive with around 15 years of experience in Technology, Project Management, Regulatory, Policy & Digital Transformation. Before joining the GSMA, Saira was working as Head of Projects at Apollo Telecom leading various technology projects with the telecom industry. Saira has also worked with UNAIDS & Cure2Children Foundation Italy.
Saira has a degree in Information Technology.
Job Titles:
- Strategic Engagement Director
Tair leads GSMA activities in Russia and CIS region. He is responsible for managing GSMA's industry programs, strategic initiatives and advocacy activities with the key telecommunication groups, international and government organizations.
Tair has extensive experience in business development, sales, operations and GR in telecom industry. Before joining the GSMA in 2018, Tair has led Ericsson business in Digital Services domain by driving sales and delivery to operators in Russia. Prior to that he held different roles in Ericsson's operations department where he was responsible for networks' roll-out, development and maintenance in Russia, CIS and Mongolia. Tair was also Member of Young Advisory Board to CEO Office at Ericsson. He was one out of five selected members of Ericsson Young Advisory Board among 120.000 employees across the globe, consulting Ericsson CEO and his Executive Leadership team on the questions of Sustainable Corporate Development and Business Excellence.
Tair has got bachelor's degree in oriental and African studies from Lomonosov Moscow State University, master's degree in economics from Russian State University for the Humanities and masters in finance from New Economic School.
Job Titles:
- Market Development Director at APAC Technology
- Market Development Director, Head of APAC 5G Industry & IoT Community, APAC
Terence serves as the Market Development Director at APAC Technology team in GSMA. The key focus is on 5G, IoT, eSIM. He establishes the APAC IoT partnership programme and the APAC 5G Industry Community that accelerates the 5G and IoT ecosystem development and innovation in the APAC region. The IoT partnership programme accumulates 60+ MNOs, 500+ innovators and ecosystem members in 20+ APAC countries, jointly drive the digital transformation in various sector including manufacturing, transportation, logistics & port, healthcare, smarty city, agriculture and environment protection etc.
Worked for IT/Telco industry for over twenty years, Terence has strong and broad experiences in telecom industries on infrastructure, product development and management, consultancy, sales and marketing. He has worked for multinational companies such as Fujitsu, Nokia, and served as the architect, consultant, product lead and pre-sales head of BSS/OSS in the Asia region.
Terence has Bachelor of Engineering (Electronic Engineering) in Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Master of Business Administration (Information Technology Management) in Hong Kong Polytechnics University, previously certified as Project Management Professional (Project Management Institute).
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Telstra
Vicki Brady became the CEO and Managing Director of Telstra, Australia's largest telecommunications company, on 1 September, 2022. She will lead T25, Telstra's strategy for sustainable growth which is designed to:
create exceptional customer experiences you can count on;
lead network and technology solutions that deliver your future;
deliver sustained growth and value for shareholders; and
create the place you want to work.
Vicki joined Telstra in 2016 and was most recently Chief Financial Officer and Strategy & Finance Group Executive. In this role, Vicki guided the company's financial performance and reporting, led the development of and progress against its corporate strategy, and oversaw its risk and internal audit capabilities, with the aim for delivering shareholder value over the long term.
Before this, Vicki was head of Telstra's Consumer & Small Business function. In this role she led a business unit with $14.6 billion of income and was one of the architects of the T22 strategy. She has also held roles as Group Managing Director, Sales & Service and Group Managing Director, Consumer. Before working at Telstra, Vicki gained extensive executive leadership experience in telecommunications and services companies in Australia and internationally, working for organisations including Optus, SingTel and KPMG.
Vicki has a Batchelor of Commerce from the Australian National University and a Master of Science in Management from Stanford University's Graduate School of Business. She is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants ANZ and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
When she is not working, Vicki enjoys spending time with her husband and two daughters at home in Sydney.
Job Titles:
- Verizon Consumer Group CEO
Yi Shen specialises in policy and regulatory issues in the telecommunications, media and technology sector. His experience includes radio spectrum policy and management, digital broadcasting, economic regulation of telecommunications infrastructure, and competition issues in the communications and audio-visual markets.
Most recently, he was a director at Plum Consulting where he specialised in spectrum management issues, such as allocation, valuation and pricing of spectrum for mobile and other uses, cost benefit analyses and impact assessments of policies and regulations relating to mobile and other wireless technologies. Yi Shen has led numerous consultancy projects and advised governments, regulators and industry players around the world, including Australia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and the UK.
His previous experience also includes roles within regulatory authorities in Singapore and the UK. Yi Shen has an MSc in Media and Communication Governance (Distinction) from the London School of Economics, and a BA in Economics and Philosophy from the National University of Singapore.
Mr Yuen Kuan Moon, 54, is the Group CEO of Singapore Telecommunications Limited (Singtel), Asia's leading communications technology group.
Appointed Group CEO on 1 January 2021, Moon directs the Singapore-based multinational's global strategy and oversees its consumer, enterprise and digital businesses.
Prior to this, Moon was Singtel's CEO, Consumer Singapore, a post he held since 2012. He led the Singapore consumer business to deliver an integrated suite of mobile, broadband and TV services. Concurrently, Moon was responsible for driving the Group's digital transformation as Group Chief Digital Officer, a role that was created in 2018 to unlock digital growth opportunities in an era of disruption.
Since joining Singtel in 1993, Moon has held several leadership roles in Marketing, Business Development and Sales, including VP of Regional Operations and EVP of Digital Consumer. In 2003, Moon was posted to Telkomsel as General Manager for Product Development and appointed Director of Commerce from 2005 to 2007.
Moon has served on the Board of Commissioners in Telkomsel since 2009. He also sits on the Board of SkillsFuture Singapore and the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM). He is a member of MCI's Digital Readiness Council and also a member of the GSMA Board.
Moon holds a First Class Honours degree in Engineering from the University of Western Australia and a Master of Science in Management from Stanford University.