Agenda

Former Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and Senior Advisor to the Global Youth Development Alliance (GYDA), he boasts over 30 years of leadership experience in international intellectual property and digital governance. During his tenure at WIPO, he engaged extensively in global internet governance initiatives under the framework of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). Launched with the Geneva Summit in 2003 and the Tunis Summit in 2005, WSIS has established a core agenda for advancing the global information society through a multi-stakeholder model, and WIPO under Gurry’s leadership served as a key pillar of this governance framework.

Earlier in his career, he helped establish the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center and developed the Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (UDRP), laying critical institutional foundations for the global internet governance system. While in office, WIPO advanced policy coordination on intellectual property in the digital environment, built technical capacities, and supported developing economies’ integration into the global innovation network. These efforts are fully aligned with the goals of digital inclusion, capacity building and trust-building set out in the WSIS Action Lines.

Sandra Maximiano, Chairwoman of ANACOM's Board of Directors since 15 December 2023, holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Amsterdam. She is an Associate Professor of Economics at ISEG - School of Economics & Management, University of Lisbon, where she is co-coordinator of XLAB - Behavioral Research Lab and the Master's Degree in Economics program. 

She was previously an Assistant Professor at Purdue University and a Research Fellow at the University of Chicago in the United States. She has also taught at Amsterdam School of Economics, Católica Lisbon School of Business & Economics, Nova School of Business and Economics and Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra.

Her academic research spans several areas: experimental and behavioral economics, organizational and labor economics, public policy, and information management. Her research explores issues related to social and moral preferences in individual decision making and in strategic and competitive environments, gender differences in economic decisions and the dynamics of information in competitive and co-operative situations. Maximiano primarily uses laboratory and field experiments to study human economic behavior and to collect data. Her work has been published in journals such as Review of Economic Studies, Economic Journal, Experimental Economics and Games and Economic Behavior. 

Célestin KADJIDJA is the Chair of the Regulatory Board of the Gabon Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications and Postal Services (ARCEP), the supreme regulatory body governing digital communications, telecom infrastructure and postal services in Gabon. A distinguished computer engineer with 30 years of elite expertise in network construction and information system governance, he is a leading figure in digital regulation and inclusive ICT development across Central Africa.

Having received professional training in Germany, he has held top-tier technology and management roles in banking, aviation and social security sectors of Gabon, overseeing large-scale IT and telecommunication projects throughout his career. Appointed by the Head of State of Gabon in August 2023 and formally taking office in October the same year, he leads ARCEP to advance institutional governance, optimize radio frequency resource management, accelerate universal digital service coverage across remote areas, and consolidate the financial sustainability of the authority.

Deeply engaged in cross-border digital cooperation and regional digital infrastructure development, he actively promotes communication regulatory collaboration among Central African nations, and advances the formulation of localized digital rules aligned with global standards. His work strongly echoes the core goals of WSIS Forum 2026 Session 530: bridging research, regulation and practice, empowering developing economies to participate in global digital governance, advancing digital public goods, closing the digital divide and facilitating international technology transfer and multi-stakeholder collaboration. As a prominent African digital regulatory leader, he brings invaluable regional experience and forward-looking insights to this panel discussion.

Mr. Jia Wang serves as Deputy Secretary-General of the World Association of Young Scientists(WAYS), an international organization dedicated to advancing cross-border scientific collaboration, facilitating mobility for young researchers, and integrating early-career scientists into global science policy dialogues.

Prior to his current role, he worked at the International Cooperation Department of CAST, where he administered international exchange initiatives and coordinated bilateral and multilateral scientific cooperation projects. His portfolio covered institutional partnerships, researcher exchange frameworks, and scientific outreach programmes connecting scientists across diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

He holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration and a Bachelor’s degree in Law, equipping him with robust policy and legal expertise to address diverse challenges within multilateral scientific governance.

Boasting extensive cross-sector experience, he effectively links early-career scientists from developing economies to global platforms. His key work includes designing youth engagement mechanisms for flagship international science conferences and fostering dialogues between researchers and policymakers to translate scientific findings into actionable governance proposals.

Dr. Mactar Seck is Head of the Innovation and Technology Section at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). A distinguished engineer holding a PhD in Telecommunication, Electronic Systems and Multimedia Engineering, he has over 20 years of professional experience in digital policy, regulatory frameworks and ICT for development. His work centres on supporting African countries to harness digital economies, build digital infrastructure, formulate digital policies and strategies, develop inclusive digital ID systems, and advance foundational technologies including IoT, blockchain and AI.

He has played a direct role in formulating multiple continental frameworks, including the AU Digital Transformation Strategy (2020–2030), the AU Data Governance Framework, the AU AI Strategy, and the Malabo Convention on Cybersecurity. Dr. Seck has also collaborated with a wide range of organizations to boost Africa’s digital development, and provided strategic insights to drive economic growth by harnessing technology and innovation.

Prior to his tenure at UNECA, he held senior leadership roles within Senegal’s regulatory and industrial sectors and worked as a senior researcher in France, where he obtained a European patent. A laureate of Senegal’s highest scientific honour and a member of its Academy of Sciences, Dr. Seck remains committed to helping African nations leverage digital transformation to achieve sustainable development and financial inclusion.

As a preeminent global leader in international ICT governance and multi-stakeholder digital cooperation, Plantina Tsholofelo Mokone currently serves as Deputy Director for Global Multilateral Affairs at the South African Department of Communication and Digital Technologies. She stands as a core policymaker shaping Africa’s and the Global South’s participation in global digital rule-making, with over a decade of distinguished experience spanning internet governance, cross-border ICT strategy, digital infrastructure development, data governance and digital inclusion.

Throughout her career, she has acted as a pivotal bridge between African nations and leading global intergovernmental bodies including the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Internet Governance Forum (IGF), BRICS and Universal Postal Union (UPU). She led the formulation and execution of South Africa’s national ICT international relations strategy, conducted in-depth research on frontier issues such as cloud computing, subsea connectivity and AI governance, and translated regional development demands into influential global digital policies and regulatory frameworks. Previously as Internet Governance Coordinator at the ZA Domain Name Authority, she spearheaded multi-stakeholder dialogue mechanisms across government, academia, industry and civil society, and actively represented African stakeholders in the G20 Digital Economy Working Group, driving consensus on digital standards and technology transfer for developing economies.

Devoted to bridging the global digital divide and empowering innovators from developing countries to become active contributors to multilateral digital governance, she has designed numerous capacity-building programmes on cybersecurity, digital rights and internet governance across Sub-Saharan Africa. Her work fully aligns with the vision of WSIS 2026 Session 530: connecting regional research and practical experience with global digital public goods development, facilitating technology collaboration, researcher exchange and the translation of regional practices into international digital regulatory provisions. As a respected thought leader and governance practitioner across Africa and global digital circles, she brings invaluable insights on advancing inclusive digital transformation, equitable global standard-setting and cross-continental scientific and technological cooperation for the forum.

Dr. François Grey serves as Associate Professor and Vice Dean for Pedagogical Innovation at the Geneva School of Economics and Management (GSEM), University of Geneva, Switzerland. He is the founding coordinator of Citizen Cyberlab – a joint initiative of CERN, UNITAR and the University of Geneva dedicated to advancing crowdsourced digital research, open science and inclusive public participation in digital transformation.

Rooted in interdisciplinary research spanning information science, digital innovation and sustainable development, Dr. Grey leads the Geneva Tsinghua Initiative, an educational framework leveraging digital technologies to advance delivery of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). His work centres on multi-stakeholder collaboration—aligning academia, international bodies, civil society and tech communities to unlock equitable digital access, co-create citizen-centric digital tools, and translate global connectivity into tangible social progress, fully echoing the core mission of the WSIS Forum to advance inclusive, people-centred information societies under the Awaza Programme.

With decades of experience bridging academic research and UN digital governance frameworks, he has designed hackathons, open data projects and capacity-building programmes that demonstrate how broadband connectivity and participatory digital innovation can reduce digital divides and empower marginalised communities. As a long-standing contributor to multi-stakeholder digital dialogue hosted in Geneva, his insights bring unique academic and practical perspectives to WSIS Forum 2026 Session 530’s discussion on connectivity as a catalyst for inclusive digital transformation.

Founder and Executive Director of the Global Youth Development Alliance (GYDA) — a Paris-registered international organization mobilizing youth engagement in digital governance, academic collaboration, and sustainable development across Europe, Asia, and Africa.

He holds three master’s degrees: Master of Public Policy and Master of Economics as well as Master of Media Management from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. Besides, he has completed advanced training programmes in economics and public policy at the National School of Development of Peking University and the PBC School of Finance, Tsinghua University.

His research sits at the intersection of artificial intelligence, data governance, and public policy, with three primary lines of inquiry: (i) algorithmic fairness and bias in public services — examining how social prejudice is systematically encoded through feature engineering, training data composition, and deployment feedback loops, with comparative analysis of global AI governance frameworks including the EU Digital Services Act (DSA); (ii) the "privacy literacy gap" in developing countries — the structural mismatch between rapid digital infrastructure rollout and citizens' capacity to protect personal data, and how AI-driven tools can close this divide; and (iii) cross-border privacy standard localization — investigating how international digital infrastructure aid programs (EU, UNDP, World Bank) can adapt imported privacy frameworks such as GDPR to local regulatory capacity and resource constraints, drawing on comparative legal analysis across the EU, US, and developing jurisdictions.

She holds a Master’s degree in Computer Science and a double Bachelor’s in Law from the National University of Singapore, alongside an overseas exchange stint at the University of California, Berkeley, where she was awarded top-tier academic scholarships. She integrates computational technology, legal expertise and financial acumen to bridge academia, industry and multilateral digital policy formulation.

She has crafted her institute’s strategic framework for digital inclusion, which has secured endorsement from senior Singaporean government officials; built a full-stack multilingual digital media ecosystem; and spearheaded a global student innovation competition spanning 72 leading universities with upwards of 10,000 registered participants. Her ongoing work linking grassroots tech innovators with governmental regulators and international industry stakeholders aligns seamlessly with the core mission of our session: empowering researchers and entrepreneurs in developing economies to evolve from passive onlookers into proactive contributors, who shape UN-aligned global digital standards via the multilateral proceedings of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Advisory Board Member, Global Youth Development Action (GYDA)

Research Fellow; Member of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU); regular contributor to initiatives of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP), and the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers Community, engaging in global development advocacy initiatives.