Bharti Enterprises’ Founder and Chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal was elected as the Chairman of GSMA. The position is valid for two years, from January 2017 through December 2018. He is the first Indian to chair the telecom industry Board.
Alongside the election of Chairman, GSMA also elected the new members of the 26-member Board. Besides, Mari-Noëlle Jego-Laveissiere, Executive Vice President, Innovation, Orange Group was once again elected as Deputy Chair for the two-year period.
As a GSMA Chairman, Mr. Mittal will be responsible for the strategic direction of GSMA, which represents nearly 800 mobile operators across the world and 300+ companies in the broader mobile ecosystem.
“I am delighted to be elected as Chairman of the GSMA, and look forward to working closely with the rest of the Board, the GSMA leadership team and our entire membership to address the critical issues facing our industry and our customers,” Mr. Mittal said.
“In a relatively brief period of time, mobile has had a transformational impact on individuals, businesses, industries and societies, contributing significantly to local economies and improving the lives of billions around the world. I am excited about what the next chapter holds for us, as we work to connect everyone and everything to a better future,” he added.
Mr. Mittal was chosen as the Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) early this year. He already served on the Boards of several reputed organizations such as the World Economic Forum (WEF), Telecom Board of International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the Broadband Commission, Harvard University’s Global Advisory Council - Board of Dean’s Advisors at HBS, International Advisory Panel of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and Prime Minister of Singapore’s Research, Innovation and Enterprise Council, to name a few.
The current GSMA Chairman Mr. Jon Fredrik Baksaas will step down from the Board at the end of 2016. He was in-charge for the past three years.
“The mobile industry is at the very heart of the world’s digital transformation, driving efforts to make the world a better place, in support of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. It has been a true privilege to serve on the GSMA Board for eight years, the last three as Chair. I wish the new Board and Chair, Mr. Sunil Bharti Mittal, the very best of luck as the GSMA focuses on extending global platform capabilities, such as GSMA Mobile Connect, to billions of users around the globe,” commented Mr. Baksaas.
