Agenda

Dr. Tawfik Jelassi was appointed UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Communication
and Information on 1st July 2021. In this position, he is responsible for the Organization’s
programmes on building inclusive knowledge societies, leading digital transformation,
strategizing the role of ICT in education, and fostering freedom of expression.
Dr. Jelassi holds a Ph.D. doctorate in information systems from New York University (USA)
and postgraduate diplomas from the University of Paris Dauphine (France).
Dr. Jelassi has extensive experience in higher education, scientific research, and information
& communication technologies. He held academic, corporate and government leadership
positions in Europe, the USA, and Tunisia.
Among others, he was Programme Director and Professor of Strategy and Technology
Management at IMD Business School in Lausanne (Switzerland, 2015 – June 2021). Prior to
that, he served as Minister of Higher education, Scientific Research and Information &
Communication Technologies in the democratic transition government of Tunisia (2014 –
2015). Prior appointments included being Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ooredoo
Telecom in Tunisia, Dean at Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées (Paris), and Professor
& Chairman of the Technology Management Department at INSEAD (Fontainebleau).

Dr Emilija Stojmenova Duh was born on 25 December 1985 in Macedonia. She moved to Maribor in 2002, when she received a scholarship from the Ad Futura agency to study in the International Baccalaureate programme run by II. Gimnazija Maribor. She completed her undergraduate and postgraduate studies at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Computer Science and Informatics of the University of Maribor.

After graduation, she worked as a young business researcher at Iskratel. After gaining her doctoral degree, she was employed by the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at the University of Ljubljana, where she is an Associate Professor in the Department of Information and Communication Technologies and where she managed the 4PDIH Digital Innovation Hub. 4PDIH is a partnership between the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and the Association of Municipalities of Slovenia that raises awareness of the importance of digitalisation, provides support in the development of digital knowledge and skills, and helps decision makers design appropriate digitalisation policies.

From February 2018 to October 2019, she was the Executive Director of the Digital Innovation Hub Slovenia. Between 2014 and 2016, she was the Director of RAZ:UM, which implemented the Demola Slovenia project as part of the international Demola network, which has been recognised by the OECD and the World Bank as a best practice example for innovation policymakers.

She has coordinated several national and international research and development projects on the use of new digital technologies for innovation in and the development of cities, villages and communities. She has worked in several thematic groups of the European Commission on the topic of digital innovation hubs and rural development. She participates in an international team of researchers that has developed the SEROI+ methodology for measuring and monitoring the societal, economic and environmental return on investment of digital products and services.

She has authored and co-authored a number of scientific and professional publications concerning digital transformation. She was the first President of IEEE’s "Women in Engineering Slovenia".

She is strongly committed to increasing the number of young people studying engineering – especially women – who will later remain active in their sectors and dare to take up leadership positions in science and engineering. As such, she was one of 50 women in ICT leadership positions selected to participate in the #HiddenNoMore multi-regional programme funded by the US State Department for empowering women in STEM fields.

She was a finalist for the "2018 Woman Engineer of the Year" in Slovenia and a nominee for Slovenian Woman of the Year 2021.

She is also the first Slovenian woman representative at the Global Young Academy and a member of the European Research Area Working Group within ALLEA – All European Academies. She was a member of the Board of Directors of the Slovenian Research Agency, a member of the Expert Council of the Employment Service of Slovenia and a board member of the international organisation Forum Synergies.

Dr. Emmanuel C. MANASSEH has more than 17 years of experience in the telecommunications sector. He is a skilled public policy professional with the proven ability to conduct evidence-based policy analysis and provide advice on a range of government priorities, from the design of domestic co-management models to international telecommunications policy. 

Dr. Manasseh is now working as the ITU Regional Director, Regional Office for Africa. Prior to this, he was a Lecturer at Nelson Mandela African Institute of Science and Technology (NM-AIST) Arusha, from June 2023 to January 2024. He joined Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) in October 2014. From June 2019 to June 2023, he was working as a Director, Industry Affairs at TCRA. Prior to joining TCRA, he was a Lecturer at Nelson Mandela African Institute of Science and Technology (NM-AIST) Arusha, Tanzania, from May 2014. From April 2013 to March 2014, he was an Assistant Professor at Hiroshima University in the Department of System Cybernetics. Dr. Manasseh began his career at Celtel Tanzania Limited (Now Airtel Tanzania), as a Telecommunications Engineer, working on Operation & Maintenance of all 2G/3G Base Station Subsystem (BSS) from 2005 to 2007. 

Dr. Manasseh holds different leadership roles, including Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Tanzania Education and Research Network (TERNET); Board Member of Maendeleo Bank PLC; and was an Alternate Councillor for the United Republic of Tanzania in the International Telecommunications union (ITU). He was also a Vice Chair of ITU -T Study Group 20, Internet of Things and Smart Sustainable Cities. 

He is also a member of professional institutes and bodies including, Engineers Registration Board of Tanzania (ERB); Senior member of the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE); Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) UK. 

Dr. Manasseh holds Doctor of Engineering (Dr. Eng.) from the department of System Cybernetics, Hiroshima University, Japan in 2013; Masters of Engineer- ing (M.Eng.) from Hiroshima University, Japan in 2010; and BSc. degree in Telecommunications Engineering from the University of Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania in 2005.

Marion Lieser became Executive Director of Light for the World International in August 2022. Before she served Oxfam Germany as CEO for 10 years, fighting global inequality and injustice, Marion studied social education, sociology and environmental science; throughout her professional career, she has been actively involved in international development cooperation in the profit and non-profit sectors in Germany and abroad. 

Marion Lieser worked for the German Development Service (DED), focusing on women’s empowerment and strengthening civil society structures in Sudan and Kenya. In Morocco, she initiated campaigns (officially sponsored by the German Foreign Minister) against xenophobia. Later she led the international programmes for the German Foundation for World Population (DSW). Following that, she established the HIV/AIDS competence centre for EPOS Health Management Consulting and subsequently established the firm’s presence in East Africa. Before joining Oxfam, the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) deployed her as integrated expert to Tanzania advising the Executive Council of the country’s largest civil society umbrella organisation whose goal is to foster health care services and education and reduce poverty.

Over the last 30+ years, Carol has been a key player as an ICT strategist and an e-Government
expert for the Government of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas. She has improved the
efficiency and effectiveness of services through strategy development and implementation,
change management, process redesign, and the procurement and deployment of solutions.
Carol has actively extended her expertise by working with regional and international
organizations such as Red GEALC (Network of e-Government Experts in Latin America and the
Caribbean), Organization of American States (OAS), CARICOM (Caribbean Community and
Common Market), Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU), and various United Nations
organizations. She is the current 2024 IGF MAG Chair. She is an advocate for the Small Island
Developing States, ensuring at every opportunity that their voices are not left out. She is also a
proponent for People, Prosperity, and Planet through responsible and sustainable use of
internet and digital technologies.

Zeynep Varoglu is a Programme Specialist in the Digital Innovation and Transformation Section of the Communications and Information Sector at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. Ms. Varoglu is responsible for the implementation of the UNESCO OER Recommendation and related OER Dynamic Coalition and  the UNESCO ICT Competency Framework for Teachers (ICT CFT) as well as initiatives in open, distance, flexible and online education. Ms Varoglu was Co-Responsible Officer for the publication ‘Learning for All: Guidelines for the Inclusion of Learners with Disabilities in Open and Distance Learning’ and the UNESCO Project Officer for the development of the UNESCO/COL Guidelines for Open Educational Resources (OER) in Higher Education.
 
Ms Varoglu holds a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) from the University of Toronto and a Master of Education (M.Ed)   from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (O.I.S.E.), University of Toronto