WBBA's Inaugural Advisory Committee Held, 8th May 2025
We are pleased to update you on the successful launch and first meeting of our WBBA Advisory Committee, chaired by Mr. Zhao Houlin, former Secretary-General of the ITU and Chairman of the WBBA Advisory Committee. The committee, including 2 new members, Mr. Boris Koprivnikar and Mr. Brahima Sanou will focus on the global promotion and development of the WBBA’s influence and growth worldwide.
The committee includes, Mr. Li Zhengmao, Chairman of the WBBA Board; Mr. Martin Creaner, Director General of WBBA; and Mr. Liu Zhiyong, Rotating Chairman of the Executive Committee.
Our new members: Mr. Boris Koprivnikar served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Administration of Slovenia from 2014 to 2018. He is a distinguished expert in digital transformation, with extensive experience in public sector management and innovation. He specializes in designing national and local digital strategies, building digital platforms, and optimizing information systems. He made significant contributions to Slovenia’s digital development. During his term, Slovenia was recognized as the fastest-growing country in the EU’s 2017 Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI).
Mr. Brahima Sanou has extensive experience with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). A seasoned expert in the digital economy and ICT, he has exceptional international vision and cross-cultural communication skills. He served as Director of the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) from 2011 to 2018, and from 2000 to 2010, he was ITU’s Regional Director for Africa as well as the representative to the African Union and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. In these roles, he strengthened ITU’s partnerships with Africa, the EU, and other UN agencies.
Chairman Li Zhengmao extended a warm welcome to the new members and introduced WBBA’s vision and development progress. Both Mr. Koprivnikar and Mr. Sanou expressed strong alignment with WBBA’s mission of ‘bridging the global digital divide, fostering an innovative ecosystem for the cloud-network-broadband industry, and promoting the development of the global digital economy’. They expressed their willingness to work closely with WBBA’s leadership and network of members to support the Association’s growth, contributing to the prosperity of the global cloud-network-broadband industry.
Meeting participants unanimously agreed that WBBA should further enhance the industry and regional representation of its membership. They suggested leveraging the strong influence and networks of the Advisory Committee members to actively expand into new industry sectors and increase membership from Europe and the Americas.
In addition, the committee proposed identifying potential partners with strong cloud-network-broadband needs, including governments, educational institutions, and research organizations, to jointly advocate for supportive policies, co-develop customized solutions and smart upgrade strategies, to achieve synergistic and mutually beneficial ecosystem development.
Based on the latest trends in global digital transformation and emerging technologies, the Advisory Committee will help WBBA members identify growth opportunities, explore new market frontiers, and shape forward-looking strategic development plans for the Association.
Chairman Zhao Houlin concluded the meeting by summarizing the outcomes and expressing his high expectations for the upcoming in-person Advisory Committee meeting in Shanghai in June 2025. He noted that this meeting had strengthened mutual understanding between WBBA leadership and the Advisory Committee, clarified the agenda for the Shanghai meeting, and, with the concerted efforts of all parties, WBBA is poised to make even greater contributions to the advancement of the global cloud-network-broadband industry and the prosperity of the digital economy worldwide.