Agenda

Dr. Cosmas Zavazava took office as Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) on 1 January 2023.

With more than 30 years in telecommunications, including over 20 years in ITU's Development Sector, Dr Zavazava has promoted and implemented impactful information and communication technology projects around the world.

Prior to his election as BDT Director, he served as ITU's Chief of Partnerships for Digital Development , overseeing development-related projects, strategic partnerships, and resource mobilization between 2019 and 2022, while launching new initiatives that have boosted the engagement of industry, private-sector and academia members in ITU's work.

Previously, as ITU's Chief of Projects and Initiatives, he oversaw development projects focused on gender, youth, and people with special needs, along with capacity building, emergency telecommunications, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and e-waste management.

Earlier, Dr Zavazava headed the Republic of Zimbabwe's Government Telecommunications Agency and served as a senior diplomat. He also taught MBA classes at the UK's Nottingham Trent University.

Throughout his career, he has focused on closing the digital and skills divide and accelerating digital transformation to achieve socio-economic development for all.

Dr Zavazava holds a PhD in Multilateral Trade from Business School Lausanne (Switzerland), and a Master of Laws degree in Telecommunications and Information Technology from the University of Strathclyde (UK), as well as a Master's in International Relations from Webster University (US), and an MBA from the University of Zimbabwe. He also holds a Bachelor's in Business Administration and diplomas in Telecommunications and Systems Engineering. 

Ms. Carmen Prado-Wagner works at the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) as Senior Officer in the Regulatory and Market Environment Division (RME). She works on regulatory, economic and financial issues of telecommunication/ICT including cost and tariff. She previously worked for the Financing Strategies Unit, at the BDT, and was responsible for the programme on Tariff regulation. She has worked on several ITU publications, technical papers and discussions at national, regional and international levels in areas, such as telecommunication/ICT policy and regulatory issues, cost and tariff modelling in the ICT sector, market analysis and significant market power (SMP), broadband infrastructure development and sharing, international Internet connectivity (IIC), International Mobile Roaming. She has organized global and regional fora for telecommunication/ICT policy-makers, regulators, academia, private sector, regional and international associations, consumer associations.

Carmen is the ITU focal point for the ITU-D Study Group 1 Question 4/1 on Economic policies and methods of determining the costs of services related to national telecommunication/ICT networks. She is also in charge of the ITU Tariff Policies Survey and database at the ITU ICT-Eye platform. This database is intended to track and show trends in the application of national tariff policies and regulations worldwide. Carmen holds a Master’s Degree in International Management and Economics from the University of Lausanne, Switzerland and postgraduate studies in Economics and Business Administration from the San Carlos University, Guatemala. 

Ms. Youlia Lozanova is a senior policy specialist at the International Telecommunication Union with over 20 years’ experience. She leads ITU’s work on collaborative digital governance and directs policy and regulatory benchmarking, trends analysis and the creation of tools. In her work with governments, she supports countries in designing flexible, resilient and sustainable regulatory frameworks that foster innovation and experimentation to create public value and advance development.

Ms. Ekaterine Imedadze has been a commissioner of the Georgian National Communications Commission (ComCom) since March 2021. Prior to taking up her position, she headed the Telecommunications Market Regulation Department at ComCom.

Ekaterine has over 15 years of professional experience in telecommunications with a global perspective. Ekaterine has held several key positions at the international telecommunications group company VEON Ltd., leading the Global Process unit responsible for the group's digital transformation. She also served as the group's internal control and risk management lead for several years. Ms Imedadze had previously served as the Head of Finance and Operations for a number of large private organisations, as well as a business consultant for leading ICT companies.

Ekaterine holds an MBA from the University of Bradford School of Management and completed the Innovation Leadership programme at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Previously, she earned a master's degree in physics as well as a postgraduate diploma in artificial intelligence and fuzzy logic from Tbilisi State University, and she is currently pursuing an LL.M. in competition law and economics at the Brussels School of Competition (BSC).

Ekaterine was appointed as the Board Member of the Digital Regulation Network (DRN) at the International Telecommunication Union from 2025.

Chairperson of the Eastern Partnership Electronic Communications Regulators Network (EaPeReg) in 2023.

Ms. Andrea Mamprim Grippa, current Head of the International Affairs Office of Anatel – Brazil is graduated in International Relations from the University of Brasília (UnB) and has a postgraduate degree in Telecommunications Management from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Since 2007, she has been working at the International Affairs Office of Anatel with focus on international cooperation in telecommunications/ICTs, especially with regional telecommunications associations and organizations, such as the Inter-American Telecommunications Commission (CITEL) – COM/CITEL and PCCI, Latin American Forum of Telecommunications Regulators (REGULATEL), Association of Telecommunications Regulators of Portuguese Speaking Countries (ARCTEL) and Sub-Working Group 1 (SGT-1) of Mercosur. 

During the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference in Bucharest, Romania, in 2022, she chaired the Working Group for the revision of Resolution 70, which aims to promote gender equality and empower women and girls through ICTs. She currently serves as Coordinator of the Com/Citel Working Group on Gender Equality and Youth Empowerment. At the bilateral level, she has been working with regulators worldwide in technical cooperation activities and exchange of regulatory information.

She also holds the position of one of Vice -Chair of the TDAG (ITU-D) 2026-2029 for the Americas region and Chair of the TDAG Working Group for streamlining Resolutions for the next World Telecommunication Development Conference (WTDC-29).

She began her work activities in the ITU Regional Office for the Americas, in addition to having worked at Telemig/Telenorte Participações (telecommunication holding company in post-privatization in Brazil), in the International Department of the National Electric Energy Agency (ANEEL) and in the international area of the Federal Engineering Council (CONFEA).

She is fluent in Portuguese, English and Spanish, with knowledge of French and Italian. 

H.E. Ms. Lara Mohammad Al-Khateeb was appointed Chairperson of the Board of Commissioners of the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) by a decision of the Council of Ministers issued on 21 September 2025.

Ms. Al-Khateeb holds a Bachelor’s degree in Law from the University of Jordan and a Master’s degree in International Business Law.

She has extensive advisory experience in legal, regulatory, and governmental affairs, with strong expertise in policy development, strategy formulation, public–private sector cooperation, and regulatory consultancy in the telecommunications sector. She previously served as Chief Legal, Regulatory, and Government Affairs Officer at Umniah Mobile Company.

She is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Jordan Student Support Fund in public universities under the Ministry of Education.

Ms. Al-Khateeb is actively engaged in women’s economic and political empowerment initiatives through her membership in several for-profit and non-profit boards. She is currently a member of the Jordanian Women Committees Forum and serves on the Board of Directors of “Little Thinkers,” an initiative under Save the Children. 

Ms. Emilia Nghikembua is the Chief Executive Officer of the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia. She is the holder of a Baccalaureus Juris, Bachelor of Law and Master of Law (cum laude) degrees from the University of Namibia, respectively. Emilia also holds a Master of Arts in Information and Communications Technology Policy and Regulation obtained from the University of the Witwatersrand and an Executive Master of Business Administration with majors in business and technology. She is an admitted legal practitioner of the High Court of Namibia.

Emilia was ranked among the top 100 African economic leaders by Institute Choiseul in 2022, 2023 & 2024, respectively. The ranking identified her as among the 100 Africans under the age of 40 years, expected to play a major role in the continent’s economic development soon. In 2023, Emilia was honoured by the Windhoek Observer as one of 50 Namibians of Merit under the corporate leadership segment. In 2024, Emilia was named the Young African Leader of the Year by the African Leadership Magazine. This award recognised her for her trailblazing contributions to Africa’s communications sector with reforms and regulatory responsibilities.