Agenda

Alexander Pröll, LL.M., is State Secretary at the Austrian Federal Chancellery, responsible for digitalisation, constitutional affairs, the public service, coordination and combating antisemitism. His work focuses on the digital identity, AI and digital skills, strengthening digital sovereignty, and modernising public administration.

Honourable Samuel Nartey George, MP, is a distinguished third-term Member of Ghana's Parliament and the serving Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations. A scholar, legislator, and public servant of considerable standing, Hon. George brings to his roles a rare convergence of legal expertise, technological acumen, and strategic governance experience. 

He holds an LLM from the University of Law, MSc in International Strategy & Diplomacy from the London School of Economics, an MA in Conflict, Peace & Security from the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, an LLB from the University of London and a BSc. in Agricultural Engineering from KNUST. He also holds professional certificates in multiple ICT disciplines. 

He has previously served as an Assistant Director in the Head of Civil Service Office in Ghana before being appointed Communications Specialist at the Presidency of the Republic of Ghana. He has also served on the Governing Board of the National Information Technology Agency (NITA) and as a Commissioner on the National Media Commission. 
At the continental and international level, Hon. Samuel Nartey George has served as the Immediate Past Secretary-General of the African Parliamentary Network on Internet Governance - a testament to his leadership in shaping Africa's digital policy landscape. 

Hon. Samuel Nartey George, MP, stands as one of Ghana's foremost voices on digital transformation, legislative integrity, and continental technology governance. 

WORK EXPERIENCE

Since June 19, 2025 Minister of Environmental Protection and Regional Development of the Republic of Latvia
Since 2023 - Chairman of the Requests Committee of the Saeima of the Republic of Latvia, Member of the Budget and Finance (Taxation) Committee
Since 2022 - Member of the Saeima of the Republic of Latvia
2022-2023 - Minister of Climate and Energy of the Republic of Latvia
2009-2023 - Chairman of Salaspils Municipal Council
2020-2022 - Alternate Member of the Committee of the Regions of the European Union. Member of the Committee of the Regions, Commission on Environment, Climate Change and Energy (ENVE) and Economic Policy Committee (ECON)
2014-2022 - Member of the Development Council of the Riga Planning Region
2021-2022 - Member of the Board of the Riga and Pierīga Municipalities Association "Riga Metropolis"
2001-2022 - Member of the Salaspils Regional Council
2002-2009 - Practising Solicitor
1997-2002 - Assistant Solicitor

POLITICAL CAREER
2023 – 2025 Member of Parliament Buriram Province
2024 –Present Secretary-General Bhumjaithai Party
Present Member of Parliament (Party-list) House of Representatives, Thailand
Present Minister of Digital Economy and Society Government of Thailand

AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY
▸ National Digital Policy Development — Formulating strategies to strengthen Thailand's digital infrastructure and international competitiveness.
▸ Cybersecurity & Data Protection — Establishing legal and technical frameworks to safeguard national digital assets and citizens' privacy.
▸ Digital Economy Promotion — Supporting innovation ecosystems, technology startups, and e-commerce to drive sustainable economic growth.
▸ ICT Infrastructure Expansion — Ensuring equitable access to broadband and digital services for all citizens nationwide.
▸ Public Sector Digital Transformation — Implementing e-Government initiatives to improve administrative efficiency and governmental transparency.
▸ International Cooperation — Representing the Kingdom of Thailand in bilateral and multilateral forums on digital economy and emerging technologies

Born in İstanbul in the year 1977, Dr. Ömer Fatih Sayan received his Bachelor degree from the Electronics Engineering Department of Istanbul University Faculty of Engineering; Faculty of Law of Bahçeşehir University and Diplomatic Studies of Oxford University – St Antony’s School. 

He completed his Master’s Degree at Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Communications Engineering Department of Technical University of Munich and at Biomedical Engineering Department of İstanbul University Institute of Science and 
Technology. He completed his PhD studies in the departments of Biomedical Engineering at Istanbul University, Private Law and Political Science & Public Administration at Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University.

He started his career in İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality in 1995 and worked in private companies in Türkiye, Germany and USA in the fields of chip manufacturing, cell phone design and R&D. He carried out studies in entrepreneurship by working under the initiative of Silicon Valley and he gave lectures on Information Law and New Trends in Informatics in many universities in Türkiye and Germany. 

Dr. Sayan has given many lectures in conferences about research subjects and he has many articles published in scientific journals. 

In addition to his academic work, he founded the Istanbul Türkiye Local Committee of the Electrical Engineering Students’ European Association (EESTEC). He is an IEEE member and a member of the EMO Ankara Branch. He served as president of the Turkish-German Friendship Delegation in Osnabrück, Germany, and the Türkische Gesprachskreis. He served as vice president and a member of the Audit Board of the Mimar Sinan Association. He served as the head of the Turkish delegation to the World Information Society Summit (WSIS). He also served as vice chair of the Independent Regulators Group (IRG). He was the coordinator of the Artificial Intelligence Türkiye Conference. 

Having worked as advisor to the Prime Minister and chief advisor to the Prime Minister between the years of 2007 and 2014, he was appointed as the Member of the Board of the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK) in January 2014. He worked as the Chairman of the Board & President of BTK between August 2015 and July 2018.

Dr. Sayan has been the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure since 21 July 2018. He has been re-appointed for a second term on 22 June 2023.

He speaks English, German and French. He is married and has 3 children

Honourable Tatenda Annastacia Mavetera has served as Zimbabwe’s Minister of Information Communication Technology, Postal and Courier Services since 2023.  

She is an elected Member of Zimbabwe’s Parliament for Chikomba West Constituency. At the continental level, Honourable Tatenda Annastacia Mavetera currently serves as the President of the Smart Africa Council of Ministers in Charge of ICT, following her election at the 8th Council Meeting on 24 March 2026, providing continental leadership on digital transformation and policy coordination. In addition, she is one of only seven African Ministers appointed to the inaugural Smart Africa Artificial Intelligence Council, a high-level ministerial body established by Smart Africa in collaboration with the African Union and the International Telecommunication Union to guide Africa’s approach to AI policy, governance, ethics, and innovation. 

Upon her appointment to Zimbabwe’s Cabinet, she assumed the Chairmanship of the Pan African Postal Union (PAPU), a position she holds until March 2026, providing continental leadership on postal sector modernisation and digital transformation. 

Hon. Mavetera is widely recognised as a leading champion of youth and women empowerment, having successfully initiated the Youth Caucus in Zimbabwe’s 9th Parliament. 

She has overseen the completion of Zimbabwe’s National AI Strategy, making Zimbabwe one of 17 African countries with such a framework. She is leading the finalisation of the national cybersecurity strategy and child online safety policy. She 
has also guided amendments to the Postal and Telecommunications Act to reflect developments in the sector. She has presided over multiple free digital skills training programs, including the Digital Skills Ambassadors Program, the 1.5 Million Coders Program, and the Cybersecurity Training Program, reaching a huge number of Zimbabweans in the initial phase. 

Hon. Mavetera has received numerous awards recognizing her leadership and advocacy, including the ICDL Africa Recognition Award (2024), the Zimbabwe Achievers Award (2025), for advancing women and youth leadership, the Youth 
Champion Award at the Eminence Business Awards (2024), inclusion among Zimbabwe’s 40 Under 40 Most Influential Young Business Leaders (2024) by the Institute of Corporate Directors, the Marketing Champion Leadership Award (MAZ, 
2024), and recognition as one of the Top 50 Most Influential Women in Zimbabwe (ICDZ). 

She holds an Honours Degree in Management and Marketing, and a Master’s in Strategic Marketing, and is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Business Leadership at Midlands State University. Hon. Mavetera brings extensive experience in the ICT sector, having dedicated over a decade to advancing digital transformation, innovation, and inclusive technology in Zimbabwe.
 
 

Thibaut Kleiner is Director at the Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology (DG Connect) of the European Commission, in charge of future network technologies -including 5G and 6G, cloud computing, software, open source, blockchain, Internet governance, Web 4.0, and digitalisation of mobility, energy and agriculture. 

Thibaut Kleiner started his European Commission career in 2001 in the area of competition policy, where he worked until 2011. Since then, he has been mostly active in the digital field, covering a wide range of areas - from cybersecurity, data, and research strategy to international affairs - as Head of Unit and subsequently Director in DG Connect. He served as adviser in Vice-President Kroes’ Cabinet, and as Deputy Head of Cabinet under Commissioner Oettinger. An economist by training with a Master’s degree from HEC Paris and a PhD from the London School of Economics, he is also a Visiting Professor at the College of Europe. 

Ingrid-Gabriela Hoven is Managing Director of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH since October 2020. Ms. Hoven is a development economist with more than 30 years of international experience focusing strongly on sustainability, gender and climate issues as well as digital transformation. From 2010 to 2014, she served as World Bank Group Executive Director representing Germany. Prior to this assignment and thereafter, she held various high-level positions in the BMZ (German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development). During this time, Ms. Hoven spearheaded new global initiatives such as the NDC Partnership and AFR100, as well as multistakeholder partnerships in the field of climate risk insurance and finance. She is a member of, amongst others, the Supervisory Board of the German Energy Agency (dena), the Board of Trustees of the Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance, the Agora Verkehrswende Council and the Insurance Development Forum (IDF) Steering Committee. Ms. Hoven studied economics and political science at Justus-Liebig University Giessen and Université Paris IX/Dauphine. She is alumna of the postgraduate program of the German Development Institute (now IDOS).