Bocar A. BA
CEO
SAMENA Telecommunications Council

For over 30 years, Bocar BA has been delivering impact in the Telecom/ICT industry of the MEA region, facilitating collaboration among private-sector and government-sector entities in the pursuit of digitalization and socio-economic conducive policies. BA's professional engagement is recognized in industry-wide advocacy activities, especially toward promoting investment sustainability in the private sector of the Middle East. His innate people-centric approach has mobilized multiple consensus-building platforms, cross-regional stakeholders, and issue-specific advocacy on important sector-development challenges.

As CEO of SAMENA Council, he is collaborating with leading platforms and global telecommunications development institutions, including the ITU, UN Broadband Commission, the World Bank (WB), and World Economic Forum (WEF), among others, as an objective-minded representative of the private sector, in particular of Telecom Operators. He is an advocate of effective policy-making and future-friendly regulation, which are crucial for fulfilling the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that all nations across the globe have agreed to in the larger interest of socio-economic development needs.

Bocar chairs the Industry Advisory Group for Development Issues & Chief Regulatory Officers Meeting (IAGDI/CRO) at the ITU and is a noted member of the Review Board of the 5th Generation Collaborative Regulation (G5) Benchmark. He is a principal advisor to various business, investment, and regulatory entities and assists governments in addressing matters relating to digital infrastructure investment, innovation catalysts, sustainable digital economy, job-creation, and citizen-centric public-sector delivery through the use of ICTs.

As Broadband Commissioner, Bocar BA has chaired consensus-building and contributed to the development of recommendations for leaders worldwide on 21st century funding and financing models, to help accelerate digital infrastructure development and digitalization.

Bocar has held various senior management positions in major corporations in Paris. His expertise includes enabling companies in building solid relationships with global customers, identifying untapped revenue growth opportunities, consolidating multiple contracts for government cooperation and developing strategies for market penetration in emerging countries throughout the Middle East, Africa and Asia. He has also worked closely with several governments and investment banks to promote trade, investment and cooperation between developed and developing countries in Europe and the Middle East. He is also actively involved in Investment projects, aiming to link governmental opportunities throughout the region.