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Mr Lin Mombo, President of the Regulatory Board, Autorité de Régulation des Communications Electroniques et des Postes (ARCEP), Gabon and GSR15 Chair
Mr. Mombo is the President of the Telecommunications Regulation Council of Gabon. He is also the current Executive President of the Assembly of Telecommunications Regulators in Central Africa (ARTAC). Mr. Mombo has served as Chair of the ITU Telecommunication/ICT Regulators Forum (FTRA) in 2012. Mr Mombo has experience as Principal Inspector in Telecommunications and Postal services and trainer at the National School for Posts and Telecommunications of Gabon. Mr. Mombo is graduated from Paris Dauphine University in France.
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 | Mr Brahima Sanou, Director, Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT), ITU
Mr Brahima Sanou has been Director of the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) since January 2011. Mr Sanou was elected, on 24 October 2014, to a second four-year term.
He draws on over thirty years of experience in the ICT sector at national and international level.
A national of Burkina Faso, Mr Sanou is committed to promoting ICT as a major driving force for sustainable socio-economic development, in particular in least developed countries, remote and rural regions and amongst persons with special needs. His focus is on sharing knowledge and coordinated resources through multi-stakeholder, cross-sector platforms such as the m-Powering Development Initiative, the Smart Sustainable Development Model initiative and the ITU Academy.
Fluent in French and English, he is married with three children.
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 | Mr Houlin Zhao, Secretary-General, ITU
Houlin Zhao was elected 19th Secretary-General of the ITU at the Busan Plenipotentiary Conference in October 2014. He took up his post on 1 January, 2015.
Prior to his election, he served two terms of office as ITU Deputy Secretary-General (2007-2014), as well as two terms as elected Director of ITU's Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (1999-2006).
He is committed to further streamlining ITU's efficiency, to strengthening its membership base through greater involvement of the academic community and of small- and medium-sized enterprises, and to broadening multistakeholder participation in ITU's work.
He is married with one son and two grandchildren. |
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Leadership debate: | |
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Mr Kemal Huseinovic, Chief IEE Department, BDT/ITU
Mr Kemal Huseinovic is the Chief of the Infrastructure, Enabling Environment and E-Applications Department at ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT). His Department is promoting the use of ICT-based networks, services and applications, while ensuring the use of appropriate technologies to build or extend their information and communication infrastructure and adapt to the rapidly changing telecommunication/ICT environment. This includes the provision of guidelines and tools for the development of policy and regulatory frameworks, financing policies and strategies, development of telecommunication and IP-based networks, promotion of pervasive broadband deployment, digital broadcasting and spectrum management, and the use of reliable and cost-effective ICT applications while enhancing cyber-security. It covers also the promotion of access and use of telecommunications and ICTs for groups that have been marginalized in their access to current mainstream ICT services, including women, youth, indigenous people, persons with disabilities and people living in remote communities.
Before joining ITU in 2014, Mr Huseinovic was Director General of the Communications Regulatory Agency of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He holds two Master Degrees and a PhD on “Competition Enlargement through Establishment and Development of Regulatory Authorities of Communication Market”. |
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Mr Bocar A. BA, Chief Executive Officer - SAMENA Telecommunications Council
A noted management, telecom technology, and advocacy professional, Bocar A. BA leads SAMENA Council to support telecom industry’s needs for knowledge exchange, stakeholder co-operation, and industry advocacy support for Operators in South Asia, the Middle East, North Africa, and other regions.
Bocar has spearheaded major initiatives in the interest of the telecoms industry. As a knowledge contributor on digital development through effective policymaking and as a strong believer in the need for realizing industry-wide collaboration and achieving socio-economic progress through ICT and incentivized digitization, Bocar has been a speaker at global industry platforms. He has built new global alliances as well as a strong ICT advocacy network to help address critical technology-centric and policy-level issues, currently being encountered within the communications industry.
Mr. BA serves as director and board member in the leadership teams of several companies, active in the areas of technology, management, and consultancy services. He is also actively involved in the privatization processes in the MEA region and drives various investment projects, aiming to link new development opportunities throughout the region.
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Mr Christian De Faria, MD&CEO – Airtel Africa
Mr Christian De Faria, MD&CEO – Airtel Africa, is a French National, who brings with him over 30 years of rich industry experience across multiple geographies, diverse sectors and organizations; such as MTN, Telekom Malaysia, Disc Vision, Deutsche Telecom and Grundig.
Mr. De Faria joined Airtel Africa in September, 2013 as CEO- Africa Operations. Christian is a Chartered Accountant, and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance and Administration from the University of Toulouse, in France.
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Session 1: Innovative investment strategies: what's new? |
 | Mr Iqbal Singh Bedi, Principal, Analysys Mason
Iqbal draws on his 21 years of experience to advise government ministers on telecoms policy, and national broadband plans. He leads Analysys Mason’s broadband activities in Africa, where he recently advised the South African Government on the implementation of its national broadband plan ‘SA Connect’. He has recently advised the Ministry of Communication and Technology (Ghana) and the World Bank on developing a framework to measure and improve the digital economy across West Africa. Iqbal is a Board Member of ScotlandIS and holds a B.Eng. (Hons) in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from the University of Strathclyde (UK). |
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Mr Abdoulkarim Soumeila, Secretary-General, ATU
Mr. ABDOULKARIM SOUMAILA is the current Secretary General of African Telecommunications Union (ATU) since January, 2011, having been re-elected at an Ordinary Session of ATU plenipotentiary Conference held in Harare, Zimbabwe in July, 2014. He is leading the Continental body entrusted with building consensus within African countries and coordinating African Common Proposals in international fora.
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Col. Natee Sukonrat, Ph.D. Vice Chairman, NBTC, Thailand
Col. Natee Sukonrat is a vice chairman of Thailand’s National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) and a chairman of the National Broadcasting Commission. He is currently responsible for formulating policies to regulate and license radio and television broadcasting, particularly the digital terrestrial television transition. Col. Natee received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering (Gold Medal) from Chulachomklao Royal Military Academy, Thailand as well as Master of Science and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of South Tampa, Florida, USA. |
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Ms Ebele Okobi, Head of Public Policy, Africa, Facebook
Ebele Okobi is the Head of Public Policy, Africa at Facebook, where she leads the company’s public policy work across Africa. Prior to Facebook, Ebele was the founding Global Head and Senior Legal Director for Human Rights at Yahoo, where she led Yahoo’s global efforts to address the legal and policy issues related to privacy, free expression and access.
Ebele previously worked as a corporate lawyer at Davis Polk & Wardwell in New York, Paris and London. She has also worked in the NGO sector, as a consumer rights policy attorney at Consumers Union in San Francisco, and as a senior director of Advisory Services at Catalyst (a non-profit with the mission of advancing women in business) in Silicon Valley. In that role, she moved to Amsterdam and initiated and led Catalyst’s expansion to Europe. Ebele was also a member of Nike’s first Management Development Program in Nike’s Europe Middle East and Africa headquarters, based in the Netherlands, where she created marketing, corporate responsibility and business development strategy for sub-Saharan Africa, for NikeWomen and Nike Digital. In 2001, she took a sabbatical to volunteer for human rights organizations in the US and Senegal.
Ebele was a founding board member of the Global Network Initiative from 2008 to 2014, was elected a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and serves on the advisory boards of Women in Technology in Nigeria and TipHub.
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Mr Steve Collar, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), O3b Networks
Steve Collar has been the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of O3b Networks since 2011. In that time, Mr Collar has guided the company through the successful build and launch of its constellation of state-of-the-art satellites and has led the business into full operations and revenue generation. O3b now serves some of the world’s largest Telecommunications, Maritime and Energy companies as well as Governments on a global basis. Mr. Collar is a satellite industry veteran, having previous worked in a variety of commercial, business development and technical roles at SES, New Skies Satellites and Matra Marconi Space (now Airbus).
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Session 2: Mobile payment debate |
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Ms Adrienne Klasa, Executive Editor, This is Africa, Financial Times
Adrienne Klasa is Editor of the Financial Times' This Is Africa, with a particular interest in the intersection between politics, business and international currents in sub-Saharan Africa. Her writing has also appeared in the Guardian, Forbes, Slate, and Foreign Policy, among others. She holds two first class degrees in political science - a BA from McGill University, and an MA from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. You can follow her on Twitter @adrienneklasa |
 | Mr J. S. Nkoma, Director General, Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA)
John S. Nkoma ls the Director General of the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA). As Chief Executive Officer his responsibilities include the regulation of telecommunications, broadcasting, postal services; licensing; management of the radio frequency spectrum, numbering, electronic and other ICTs. Prior to joining TCRA he has held posts as Professor of Physics, Dean of Science, Head of Department at the University of Botswana and Head of Physics at the University of Dar es Salaam. He holds BSc (UDSM), MSc (Essex) and PhD (Essex) degrees and certificates in Telecommunications Regulation, Numbering, Spectrum Management and Strategic Management. He has published several research papers and university level textbooks. |
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 | Mr Sunil Kanti Bose, Chairman, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), Bangladesh
Mr. Sunil Kanti Bose, Chairman Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) joined Bangladesh Civil Service in 1979. He obtained his B.Sc. Honors and M.Sc. degree in Zoology from University of Dhaka. He did his second masters in forestry in the University of Peshawar, Pakistan. He also obtained Masters of Social Forestry and Community Development from University of Philippines at LosBanos. Mr. Bose has more then 33 years of Experience in Administration, Management in the Civil Service in different capacities in various organizations. He worked as Chairman Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA). and also as Chairman Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA). Being promoted as a Secretary to the Government of Bangladesh, he first worked in the ministry of Social Welfare and then worked as Secretary, Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. While working as Secretary MoPT for about four years he made mentionable contribution in Regulation, Management and Development of Telecommunication and Postal Services of the country. In his tenure as a Secretary MoPT he was Chairperson of five Companies operating in different areas of Telecommunication sectors. |
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Mr Koffi Fabrice Djossou, Senior Sales Director-Africa for ABS
Koffi Fabrice DJOSSOU is the Senior Sales Director-Africa for ABS, young and fast growing global satellite operator, with an entrepreneurial and creative business approach. Koffi has over 10 years experience in ICT and telecommunication industry. He is the former Africa Liaison for ZACR, a South African based entity. ZACR performs the technical and administrative functions of the ZA Central Registry (Internet registry and infrastructure), which includes the administration of the CO.ZA domain name space and also the dotAfrica geographic Top Level Domain
IEEE member, Koffi is a telecommunication engineer with a significant knowledge in project management, strategy and policy development.
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 | Mr Sacha Polverini, Senior Program Officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Sacha Polverini joined the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Financial Services for the Poor (FSP) team in December 2012 as Senior Program Officer - Regulation and Policy. Since June 2014 Sacha chairs the International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU) Focus Group on DFS for Financial Inclusion (http://www.itu.int/en/ITU-T/focusgroups/dfs/Pages/default.aspx ). The Focus Group aims at developing principles, guidelines and other tools that policy and decision makers in developing countries can use to fast track policy reform targeting the unbanked. Sacha joined the foundation from Brussels where he lived and worked for almost 20 years representing the interests of the financial services industry before both the EU and national policy and decision makers. Sacha worked – inter alia - at Barclays Bank PLC as Group Director for EU public Policy and at Genworth Financial Mortgage Insurance (formerly GE Mortgage Insurance) as Managing Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs Europe. |
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Mr Mortimer Hope, Director Spectrum and Public Policy Africa, GSMA
Mortimer Hope is Director: Spectrum and Public Policy Africa at the GSM Association from July 2014. For ten years prior to that he was Executive Head of Division for Technical Regulation at Vodacom, where he was responsible for developing policy as well as obtaining and managing scarce resources such as spectrum and numbers. Before Vodacom Mortimer spent six years at the South African Communications regulator ICASA in various engineering management roles, one of which was Senior Manager for spectrum management.
While at Vodacom Mortimer was Chairman of GSM Association Africa, where he led the MNO engagement on regulatory matters such as SADC Home and Away Roaming. He has participated in the last three ITU World Radiocommunicaton Conferences (WRC 2003, 2007 and 2012), focusing on spectrum for mobile communications.
Mortimer holds a Master of Science Degree in Telecommunications from the Moscow Technical University of Communications Technology and an MBA from the University of Pretoria. He is registered as a Professional Engineer by the Engineering Council of South Africa and is a Fellow of the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers.
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Session 3: Spotlight on network sharing business models |
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Mr Malcom Webb, Partner, WebbHenderson
Malcom Webb, Partner, WebbHenderson, is advising clients in the telecommunications, energy and other infrastructure sectors. Malcolm provides expert legal advice on both corporate and commercial transactions and strategic regulatory and competition law issues. He advises companies, regulators, governments and other clients. His regulatory and competition experience includes wholesale access regulation, market power issues, disputes and merger clearances. In the telecommunications sector, Malcolm's recent work has involved next generation broadband projects, submarine cable arrangements, infrastructure sharing transactions, wholesale agreements, access to content and net neutrality issues, mobile termination rates, market liberalization and network procurement transactions. Malcolm has been ranked as one of the top three communications regulatory lawyers in the world by The International Who's Who of Business Lawyers 2012 and 2013.
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 | Mr Jacques Stern, Board Member, Autorité de Régulation des Communications Electroniques et des Postes (ARCEP), France
Jacques Stern is a graduate of the Ecole Normale Supérieure (ENS, 1968) where he was professor and the Director of the Computer Science Laboratory from 1993 to 2007. He is an expert in computer security and cryptography. He was the recipient of the CNRS Gold Medal. He is an Officier of the Légion d’honneur. From 2007 to 2010, Jacques Stern has been Chairman of the Board of the Agence Nationale de la Recherche and of the company Ingenico. Early in 2010, he became senior advisor of the ministry of higher education and research. In 2012, he has been appointed as member of ARCEP, where he follows in particular the subject of spectrum licensing.
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Mr Mike Jensen
Mike Jensen has worked on ICT infrastructure projects in over 45 developing countries over the last 25 years. Mike is the Internet Access Specialist for the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) where he manages a global program to promote infrastructure sharing policies and regulations in developing countries. Mike also advises a number of other agencies working to support the development of Internet infrastructure. He recently helped devise the SADC ICT Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan (RIDMP) and is currently advising ECOWAS on its regional ICT infrastructure development plans, as well as assisting with the post-Ebola crisis backbone connectivity strategy in Liberia, working with the African Union Commission to support the development of regional Internet carriers and assisting the Internet Society (ISOC) with a guide to best practice for Internet Exchange Points (IXPs).
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Mr Peter Pitsch, Executive Director, Intel
Peter Pitsch is the Executive Director of Communications Policy and Associate General Counsel for Intel Corporation. He is responsible for the coordination of Intel policy surrounding communications and electronic commerce. Prior to joining Intel, Pitsch was the president of Pitsch Communications from 1989 to 1998 which represented telecommunication’s clients before the FCC and Congress, provided business and regulatory planning, and published and lectured on U.S. regulatory policy. Pitsch was the Chief of Staff to the Chairman of the FCC from 1987 to 1989 where he advised the Chairman on all issues before the FCC including access reforms, price caps, major tariffs, and broadcasting. Before his move to Chief of Staff. Pitsch was Chief of Office of Plans and Policy. His responsibilities included managing the FCC policy office that provided recommendations on major issues such as access reforms, major tariffs, broadcast regulation, auction and spectrum allocations. From 1980 to 1981, Pitsch was a staff member of the Reagan Administration Transition Team which developed recommendations for reforming the Federal Trade Comnission with special focus on antitrust issues. He was a senior attorney at Montgomery Ward, Inc. from 1979 to 1981. He provided legal counsel and legislative lobbying of FTC, consumer protection, energy and international trade matters. Prior to that, he worked for three year as an attorney-advisor to Commissioner Calvin Collier at the Federal Trade Commission.Mr. Pitsch received a B.A. in Economics from the University of Chicago in 1973 and his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center in 1976. He is a member of the District of Columbia Bar, the Virginia State Bar, and the Federal Communications Bar Association. |
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Mr Mongi Marzoug,Vice President, Internet Governance and Digital development, Orange
Mongi Marzoug is Orange Group Vice President of Internet Governance and Digital Development. He is in charge of developing Orange Group relationships with international institutions involved in internet governance and promoting Orange strategy within relevant international and regional bodies and forums for digital development in Africa and Middle East. Prior to this position Mongi served as Tunisia ICT minister from 2011 to 2014, during this period he conducted important reforms and projects regarding governance, legal framework, regulation, and digital economy.
During his tenure as ICT Minister, Mongi has overseen successful international and regional ICT and Internet forums held in Tunisia (ICT4All 2012 and 2013, Freedom Online 2013). Mongi has an extensive management experience within the telecommunications industry, with a strong expertise on communication networks. He holds a patent in the mobile radio network technology, and he has published several scientific and technical papers in this domain. Mongi Marzoug holds an engineer degree from “Ecole Polytechnique” (France) and Telecom ParisTech (France); and a PhD in physics and Accreditation to Supervise Research. |
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Session 4:The impact of taxation on the digital economy |
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Dr Raul Katz, President, Telecom Advisory Services LLC and Director, Business Strategy Research, Columbia Institute for Tele-Information
Raul L. Katz is an Adjunct Professor in the Finance and Economics Division at Columbia Business School. He is also President of Telecom Advisory Services (www.teleadvs.com), a firm that advises technology clients in the fields of strategy, regulation and business development. In the last five years, Dr. Katz has focused on analyzing the economic impact of broadband, and the development of national broadband plans. He has led projects on the economic impact of broadband in the United States, Europe, West Africa, and Latin America. Dr. Katz received his Ph.D. in Management Science and Political Science, an M.S. in Communications Technology and Policy from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and several degrees from the University of Paris-Sorbonne.
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Mr Souleymane Tamboura, Mmembre du Conseil de Régulation, ARCEP, Burkina Faso
Monsieur TAMBOURA est présentement membre du Conseil de Régulation de l'Autorité de Régulation des Communications Électroniques et des Postes (Arcep) du Burkina Faso. En sa qualité de Conseiller, il a régulièrement pris part aux réunions du Colloque Mondial des régulateurs institué par l'UIT.
Il a été de 2008 à 2011, Conseiller Spécial du Premier Ministre, Chef du Gouvernement du BURKINA FASO , pour les projets et programmes de développement en cours d'identification et ou d'exécution au Burkina Faso, ainsi que la recherche et la mobilisation des financements auprès des partenaires au développement.
De 2006 à 2008, il a occupé les fonctions de Conseiller des affaires économiques au Ministère de l'économie et des finances du BURKINA FASO, en charge des questions de coordination des investissements publics.
De 1984 à 2006, M. Tamboura a été successivement analyste financier et Directeur des Opérations et de la Recherche au Fonds Africain de Garantie et de Coopération Économique à Cotonou au Bénin.
M. Tamboura a débuté sa carrière professionnelle au Ministère du Plan et de la Coopération du Burkina Faso comme économiste planificateur.
Monsieur Tamboura est diplômé de l'Institut de Développement Économique et de Planification (IDEP) de la CEA à Dakar et de l'Université de Dakar au Sénégal.
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 | Mr Hichem Besbes , President, INTT, Tunisia
Hichem Besbes is the Head of the Telecommunication National Regulatory Authority of TUNISIA (INTT) since April 2014. He holds a HDR “Habilitation à Diriger les Recherches” in Telecommunications from Sup’Com, University of Carthage, TUNISIA, and a PhD in Electrical Engineering from ENIT, University of Tunis-El Manar, TUNISIA. He joined Sup'Com in 1991 as a lecturer. From July 1999 to October 2000, he was a post doctoral fellow at Concordia University, Montréal, Canada. In July 2001, he joined Legerity, Inc., Austin, Texas, USA, where he was a senior system engineer working on broadband modems. From March 2002 to July 2003, he was a member of Technical Staff at Celite Systems, Inc., Austin, Texas, where he contributed to definition, design, and development of Celite's high-speed data transmission systems over wireline networks. In September 2003, he regained his position at Sup'Com, where he was a Professor in Telecommunication and director of the research Lab COSIM. From January to May 2011, he was a Fulbright Visiting scholar at Colorado State University. From March 2013 to March 2014, he served as a board member of INTT.
He has more than 100 publications in international scientific journals and conferences dealing with signal processing and wireless communication. |
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Cynthia Reddock-Downes, Executive Officer, TTAT, Trinidad and Tobago
Cynthia Reddock-Downes is by profession a Chartered Accountant and also holds a Degree in Management from the University of the West Indies. She has experience in both operating and regulatory telecommunications environments, having worked at the Telephone Company in Trinidad and Tobago (now TSTT) for several years in various positions in Finance and Accounting; Internal Audit; Development Programme Finance and Financial Systems implementation. Cynthia also worked in Finance and Accounting in the United Kingdom for several years and joined the regulator Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago in November 2004. Since that time, she has been Executive Officer for Finance and Administration at the Authority involved in Financial and Human Resource Management, procurement, the development and implementation of policy frameworks on costing of services; the LRAIC Model; Tariffs; Universal Service; Regulatory Accounting and other related policy frameworks. Cynthia also represents the GORtt and the Authority as Vice-President of the ITU Study Group 3 – Regional Group for Latin America and the Caribbean.
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Session 5: Internet of Everything: are we ready? |
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Professor Ian Brown, Professor of Information Security and Privacy, Oxford Internet Institute
Professor Ian Brown is Professor of Information Security and Privacy at the Oxford Internet Institute. His research is focused on surveillance, privacy-enhancing technologies, and Internet regulation. He is an ACM Distinguished Scientist and BCS Chartered Fellow, and a member of the Information Commissioner's Technology Reference Panel.
He has consulted for the United Nations, Council of Europe, OECD, US Department of Homeland Security, JP Morgan, Credit Suisse, Allianz, McAfee, BT, the BBC, the European Commission, the Cabinet Office, Ofcom, and the National Audit Office.
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Mr Hodge Semakula, Executive Secretary/CEO, EACO
Mr Hodge Semakula is the Executive Secretary / CEO of the East African Communication Organization (EACO) whose mission is to promote policy harmonization and development of the ICT sector in the five East African Community member States.
Mr. Semakula is a lawyer by profession and holds an LLM in IT & Telecom Law and an M.A in Public Administration & Management. He has in the last twenty years served as Legal Counsel to a number of public and private organizations in Uganda.
Before joining EACO in 2012, Mr. Semakula served as Legal Counsel to the Uganda Communication Commission for 12 years. During this period, he gained ample knowledge and experience in regulation of the ICT sector and contributed to the development of the regulatory and policy framework for the communication sector in Uganda.
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 | Mr Alain Billerot, Regional Director, IBM Central and West Africa
Alain Billerot is Country General Manager of IBM Central and West French speaking Africa since July 2012.
Previously, Alain was Territory Manager for North & West Africa since 2009. In this role, he strongly contributed to the development of the business by growing our revenues and market-share in the region. Thanks to the new sales organisation model he put in place, he significantly participated to the set-up of the Algerian General Business, Business Partners and Software organisations.
Prior to that, he was Territory Manager at IBM France Center- West until 2006 and he extended his coverage to all West France until 2008.
He also was Regional Manager at IBM Caribean West Indies from 2000 to 2004 and Sales Manager at IBM Morocco from 1996 to 2000, where he contributed to the creation of IBM Morocco, and mainly the Services division.
Alain graduated from the St Etienne Business School.
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 | Mr Shiv Bakhshi, Vice President, Industry Relations, Ericsson
Shiv K. Bakhshi, Ph.D., is Vice President, Industry Relations in Group Function Technology at Ericsson. He is charged with the responsibility of technology and regulatory strategies for Africa and the Middle East, and works closely with industry and policy leaders in those regions.
A recognized expert in mobile technology, policy and markets, Dr. Bakhshi is a strong believer in the role mobile broadband can play in economic development and in helping unleash the digital vitalities of the peoples in emerging economies.
Earlier, as an industry analyst and consultant, Dr. Bakhshi headed the worldwide mobile network and device practices for a leading research and advisory firm for several years. A frequent speaker at industry and academic conferences, he has presented on a broad range of topics pertaining to the structural transformation of the mobile industry.
Dr. Bakhshi started his career as a journalist in India. Later, as an academic, he taught international telecom policy and strategy, and directed graduate and doctoral research, at the University of Kentucky.
A political economist by training, he has a bachelor’s in Economics from Calcutta University. He earned his master’s as well as his doctorate in Communication from The Ohio State University.
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Mr Eric H. Loeb , Vice President, AT&T
Eric H. Loeb is responsible for supporting AT&T’s international external affairs team. In addition to implementing market access and compliance strategies to enable AT&T’s global expansion, other responsibilities for Mr. Loeb include advocacy on policy matters related to the stable growth, investment and innovation by the digital economy sector. His work matches the diversity of the AT&T portfolio across fixed and mobile broadband platforms, and including emerging machine-to-machine technologies.
Mr. Loeb is based in AT&T’s Washington DC office. He is an active member in several industry and community organizations, including current service as Chair of the United States Council for International Business ICT Policy Committee, and Co-Chair of the International Chamber of Commerce Task Force on the Internet and Telecommunications.
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 | Mr Abderrahi Koumaa, Director General, Gabon Telecom
Mr Abderrahi Koumaa ingénieur Telecom est le Directeur Général de Gabon Telecom et Président du conseil d’administration de Moov RCA depuis Février 2015. M A.KOUMAA était directeur de l’ingénierie du Groupe Maroc Telecom depuis 2008 et administrateur de Gabon Telecom et Mauritel depuis 2011. M.Koumaa assurait la fonction de Directeur de l’équipement des réseaux mobiles de Maroc Telecom depuis 2002 et responsable de division de recherche pour les télécommunications publiques avant cette date. |
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Session 6: Interoperability in the digital ecosystem: a layered approach |
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Prof. Dr Urs Gasser, Executive Director of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society, Harvard University and Professor of Practice, Harvard Law School.
Mr Urs Gasser is the Executive Director of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University and a Professor of Practice at Harvard Law School. His research and teaching activities focus on information law, policy, and society issues. |
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Eng Mohammad Al Taani, Chairman of the Board/Chief Executive Officer, Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC), Jordan
Eng. Mohammad Al Taani was appointed as the Chairman of the Board of Commissioners/ Chief Executive Officer of the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) in May 24, 2011. With 31 years of experience in telecommunications and information technology, in both the public and private sectors, Al Taani acquired distinctive regulatory, technical, and administrative expertise in the ICT industry. |
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 | Mr. Jean Louis Beh Mengue General Manager, Telecommunications Regulatory Board of Cameroon.
Duty posts:
Since 1999, Mr Beh Mengue is the General Manager of the Telecommunications Regulatory Board.
1992 – 1999: Secretary General at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications.
1990- 1992: Secretary General at The Ministry of Animal Branding, Livestock and Fishries.
1989 – 1990: Director of Mails at the Presidency of the Republic of Cameroon.
From 1974 – 1979: Lecturer at the National Advanced School of Posts and Telecommunications (ENSPT), Yaounde.
Jean Louis Beh Mengue is holder of:
1969: Baccalauréat scientifique, série D (GCA Advanced level in science).
1974: Diploma – Inspector ofPosts and telecommunications, National Advanced School of Posts and Telecommunications (ENSPT) – Yaounde
1982: Diploma – Administrator of Posts and Telecommunications, National Advanced School of Posts and Telecommunications (ENSPT) – Paris
International Organisations:
2005: Member of Executive Committee (Exco) – CTO
2005: Representative of the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications at the Central African Customs and Economic Union (CACEU), Conference of Central African Posts and Telecommunications Administrations (CAPTAC), Conference of Central African Posts and Telecommunication (COPTAC)
2004 -2005: First Chairman – ARTAC (Association of Central African Telecommunications Regulators)
2001: Permanent representative ofCameroon in CTO Council Training:
2003: IPPP ( Institute for Public Private Partnership), Georgetown, Washington DC
2000: TEMIC (Telecommunications Executive’s Management In~t’itatiotUir Course) CANADA
1999: JlCA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) – Japan
1977: Belgium posts management – Brussels, Belgium
1975: PMC (Postal Management College), Great Britain
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Mr Sonam Phuntsho, Director, BICMA, Bhutan
Sonam Phuntsho comes from a small village called Tang in Central Bhutan. He holds B.A. Honours degree (Political Science) from Delhi University, India and Master of Public Administration degree from the Pennsylvania State University, USA.
Started his career in 1986 with the Royal Civil Service Commission, Thimphu and held important management positions including the post of Deputy Secretary.
From 2005-2008, he served as the Director of the Royal Institute of Management (RIM). Prior to his appointment as the Director of the Bhutan InfoComm and Media Authority in 2010, he was also the Director of the Department of Information and Media, Ministry of Information and Communications from 2008 to 2009.
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 | Ms Patricia Cooper, Vice President, Government Affairs & Policy, Intelsat
Patricia Cooper leads Intelsat’s U.S. and international government lobbying and advocacy activities and relationship management. She also manages Intelsat’s political programs in the United States, including overseeing the Company’s political action committee. Prior to joining Intelsat in August 2014, Ms. Cooper led the Satellite Industry Association (SIA) as its president for 7 years, and served twice with the U.S. government, at the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the U.S. Commerce Department. She has also worked for start-up ventures PanAmSat Corporation and CoreExpress and holds a Master’s Degree in International Economics from the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.
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Session 7: Fostering e-accessibility: The regulator as an enabler |
 | Mrs Sofie Maddens, Head of the Regulatory and Market Environment Division, BDT. ITU
Sofie Maddens is the Head of the Regulatory and Market Environment Division of the ITU BDT. Lawyer by training, Sofie Maddens has worked as Regulatory and Policy Expert in the telecommunications/ICT sector in international and multi-cultural environments, including in Asia and the Middle East, as well as in the Americas, Europe and Africa. She has managed complex private sector, government, and regional and international projects and grants for national governments and their National Regulatory Authorities, the European Commission, the World Bank, the Telecommunications Development Bureau of the ITU as well as for a wide variety of private telecommunications, consulting and financial sector clients. Her scope of expertise has focused in particular on the information and communications sectors, the postal sector as well as the information society (including Internet policy and governance, e-commerce, privacy, cybercrime and cyber security). |
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Mr Ron Box, Regulator, Telecommunications and Radiocommunications Regulator (TRR), Vanuatu
Mr Box is the Regulator of TRR Vanuatu. Prior roles include: inaugural CEO of the Telecommunications Authority of Fiji, consultancies for the ITU, APT, Government of Mongolia, a 3 year secondment to the APT, and 19 years with the Australian Communications and Media Authority.He represented and led delegations and been an office bearer in a range of regional & international fora. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers Australia, hold electrical engineering, telecommunications regulation, & business administration & policy tertiary qualifications.
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Eng Hesham El Alaily, Executive President, National Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (NTRA), Egypt
Hesham El Alaily has been holding his current position as Executive President of the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA) of Egypt since 17/7/2013. El Alaily held several managerial posts in Egypt, Arab and European countries as he served in France Telecom as Vice President as well as CEO of TeleYemen (managed by France Telecom). Prior to this, he was appointed VP Telecom Sourcing, Supply Chain and Strategic Partnership for the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) Region. He led the transformation of the Telecom Sourcing team in the EMEA region and identified synergy and capitalized on the group telecoms spend. He also implemented innovative concepts with carriers based on MPLS interconnect that have improved access P&L. He had also served in Equant Paris for several years as Business Planning Director, EMEA Director Customer Services and as a General Manager Telco & Access Management for EMEA Region (115 countries). Hesham El Alaily obtained his Executive MBA from ESCP-EAP (Paris) in 1998, and his BSc in Telecom Engineering from Cairo University in 1984. |
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Ms Mignon Clyburn, Commissioner, FCC, United States
Mignon L. Clyburn served as Acting Chairwoman of the Federal Communications Commission, following her appointment by President Barack Obama on May 20, 2013. As Commissioner, she is serving a second term as a Democrat on the Commission, for which she was sworn in on February 19, 2013 following her re-nomination by the President and confirmation by the United States Senate.
Clyburn began her service at the FCC in August, 2009, after spending 11 years as a member of the sixth district on the Public Service Commission (PSC) of South Carolina. She served as its chair from July 2002 through June 2004.
Prior to her service on the PSC, Clyburn was the publisher and general manager of The Coastal Times, a Charleston-based weekly newspaper that focused primarily on issues affecting the African American community. She co-owned and operated the family-founded newspaper for 14 years. |
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Dr Vijayalakshmy K. Gupta, Member, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), India
Dr. Vijayalakshmy K Gupta joined Telecom Regulatory Authority of India as Member on 4th March, 2013. Dr. Gupta, an Officer of Indian Defence Accounts Service 1974 batch, retired as Secretary to the Govt of India in the Ministry of Defence (Finance Division). She has served as Member (Finance) in the Telecom Commission, Additional Secretary in Ministry of Women and Child Development and Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Defence (Finance Division). She is an alumnus and Gold Medalist of the National Defence College and M Phil from Madras University on Defence and Strategic Studies. She is qualified to carry out Quality Systems Audit as a certified lead Auditor from Cranfield University, UK. During her service in the Defence Accounts Department, she has been on deputation to various organizations like Ordnance Factory Board, Border Road Organization, Radar and Communication Project, Director General of Naval Projects etc. In the Ministry of Defence, She directly contributed to formulation, scrutiny and finalization of high value proposals for modernization of Defence Forces and provision of amenities to the troops. Her area of special interest was in strengthening Internal Audit due to commitment to highest standards of probity, transparency and accountability in public spending. In the Dept of Telecom she headed the Inter Ministerial Committee that finalized the design of the Auction of “3G Spectrum”. Due to the fairness and transparency built in this complex process, the Auction yielded unprecedented revenue exceeding the estimated revenues by more than three times. Her doctoral thesis was on Human Rights of Women in the backdrop of Constitutional Guarantees vis-à-vis Implementing Mechanisms. In the Ministry of Women and Child Development, she spearheaded documentation of the journey of the Indian woman through a book ‘Ananya’. As Member (Finance) in Dept of Telecom, she initiated pilot projects under the aegis of the Universal Service Obligation Fund to provide mobile telephone connectivity to women’s self help groups (SHG) and then training the SHGs to run mobile handset and modem repair centers and solar based mobile charging centers in rural areas, with active participation of mobile telephone manufacturers and other stakeholders as part of Corporate Social Responsibility. She has participated in many National/International forums on women and children including the Executive Board of UNICEF. On the Telecom side, she has participated in deliberations at the ITU, World Telecom Development Conference 2010, the Plenipotentiary Conference (PP-10) and others. She has been an invited speaker at many national industry and academic forums like IIM Indore, Indian School of Business, IIT Delhi, College of Defence Management, Madras Management Association, etc and has addressed national and international gatherings on a variety of issues related to management, telecommunications, defence, procurement in Govt.etc
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Session 8: Smart regulation to facilitate m-services and applications? |
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Mrs Mercy Wanjau, Assistant Director, Communications Authority of Kenya
In her current role Mercy is involved in providing advisory support in legal and regulatory aspects such as statutory compliance, public policy analysis and legislative development in Kenya, in the region (COMESA and EAC) and internationally (ITU/UNCTAD/World Bank/Infodev).
She holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Nairobi, Kenya and a Master of Laws degree from the University of Cape Town, South Africa. She is an Eisenhower Fellow. |
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Dr Dražen Lučić, President of Council, Croatian Post and Electronic Communications Agency (HAKOM), Croatia
President of Council of Croatian Post and Electronic Communications Agency (HAKOM) and member of board of the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC) since 2013. Previously served as HAKOM’s Executive Director from 2009. Before joining HAKOM, Mr. Lučić worked at Ericsson in Croatia, Western Europe and Israel for more than 20 years, rising from engineer in R&D department to senior sales director for one of the global telecommunication networks operators. Born in 1963. in Brčko, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Holds PhD degree in electrical engineering – telecommunications from the University of Zagreb. One of founder of Postgraduate specialist study in electronic communications market regulation at University of Zagreb. Author and co-author more than 50 scientific and professional papers. Speaks English, German, Spanish and Swedish. |
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Mrs Kathleen Riviere-Smith, Chief Executive Officer, URCA, Bahamas
Mrs. Kathleen Riviere-Smith was appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA), with effect from April 2, 2012.
A Certified Public Accountant, Mrs. Smith joined the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), which preceded URCA, as a Financial Analyst, in 2000. In January 2011, she was appointed Director of Policy and Regulation. Her appointment as URCA CEO is for a term of five years.
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Ms Katharina Pillay, Councillor, ICASA, South Africa
Katharina Pillay, was appointed as a counillor at the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) in February 2013. At ICASA much of her focus has been consumer and Disability regulation, while, she currently leads a process on market consolidation.
Before joining ICASA, Katharina worked in the private and public sectors for a decade and a half. Universal access and service has been a key area of work.
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| | Mr Collins Chomba, Manager Interconnection and Competition, on behalf of Ms Chalwe-Mudenda, Director General, ZICTA, Zambia
Collins Chomba is currently the Manager – Interconnection and Competition at ZICTA. His responsibilities among others; undertaking market analysis to dertermine the status of competition and taking remedial actions if necessary, tariff regulation for protection of consumers, reviewing tariff and promotion applications submitted by the operators and developing cost instruments/models to aid with review /regulations of tariffs.
Prior to Joining the ICT Regulator in Zambia in 2012, Collins worked in the Capital Markets industry for about 8 years.
Collins holds Bachelor of Accountancy and Finance Degree from the Copperbelt University, Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) from the Herriot Watt University, UK.
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Concluding discussions: How does regulation impact broadband uptake? |
 | Ms Magdalena Gaj, President, Office of Electronic Communications, Poland and GSR13 Chair
Magdalena Gaj is a licensed legal adviser / legal counsel and expert in telecommunications law. Since 2001 she has continually dealt with telecommunications issues. She was responsible for successful digital terrestrial TV implementation (DVB-T) as well as facilitation of the development of telecommunications services and consumer protection. Between 2009-2012 she was appointed as Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Infrastructure where she was responsible for telecommunications and postal issues. Since 2012 serves as the President of the Office of Electronic Communications. |
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H.E. Mr Seng Kong, 1st Member of the Telecommunication Regulator of Cambodia (TRC), Cambodia
2012 -as current: 1st Member of the Telecommunication Regulator of Cambodia (TRC).
2004-2012: Senior Adviser to MPTC, responsible for the review and drafting of Telecom Law and Regulations, drafting the National Broadband Policy for Cambodia in cooperation with the
ITU consultants.
1998- 2003: Under Secretary of the MPTC with main duties in the drafting of Telecom Law and regulations.
From 1993- 1997: Administrative and Legal adviser to the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications of Cambodia (MPTC);
Qualifications and Experience:
1. Bachelor of Law and Economics in Phnom Penh
2. Bachelor of Commerce in Australia.
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Mr Manuel E. Ruiz, Board Member, SUTEL, Costa Rica
Manuel E. Ruiz has a degree in Computer Science from University of Costa Rica and later obtained a Fulbright Scholarship to complete a Master of Science degree from George Washington University, with a minor in Engineering Administration. Mr. Ruiz has worked as a professor and consultant in Information and Communication Technologies, and has also worked for public and private sectors as well as international organizations leading innovative projects that make appropriate and efficient use of technological advances
Last year he joined SUTEL (Telecommunications Regulator in Costa Rica) as a permanent board member, where, among other initiatives, he has personally promoted the expansion of the universal access funds to increase bandwidth penetration in rural areas, providing telecommunications services to reduce the Country’s digital divide. |
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