Category: Invited guests

Jihane Ajijti is Head of Business Development, Digital and Communication within OCP Africa. She manages partnerships and development projects that aim at improving the ecosystem around smallholder farmers, particularly through offering a wider range of innovative agro-services (training, financial inclusion, market linkages). She joined OCP Group in 2014 and she is based in Casablanca. Prior to joining OCP, she was an associate in an international strategic consultancy firm where she has worked for several large-scale projects in various industries. A native of Morocco, she holds a Master in Management from HEC Paris and an Executive MBA from Africa Business School in partnership with Columbia Business school.

Ambassador of Pakistan since June 2019. Hamid Asghar started is diplomatic career with the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1992. Over the last 24 years, he served as numerous positions around the world: Vice Consul in Dubai, Second Secretary in Germany, Media Coordinator & Protocol in charge in London, Deputy Chief of Protocol for Punjab in Lahore and Deputy Chief of State Protocol responsible for VVIP visits in Islamabad. He was also Head of Chancery and Acting Consul General in London, Counsellor & Acting Consul General in Australia and Consul General in Los Angeles. He has a Master’s Degree in Business Administration, from IBA, Lahore having specialized in Marketing and Management. 

Mehdi Tazi graduated from Télécom Paris Sud in 1999 and received an MBA from INSEAD in 2004. He started his career at KPMG Consulting France. He was successively Director of Development of the Saham Group, Deputy Managing Director and then Managing Director of Isaaf Mondial Assistance. Mehdi Tazi was then appointed Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Saham Assurance after having served as its Chief Executive Officer.  He also served as interim CEO of GA Angola Seguros and as a director of several insurance companies of Saham Group, Taslif, CAT in Morocco. Since 2017, he has been Head of the Beassur firm. In 2013, Mr. Tazi was recognized by Jeune Afrique among the 25 young African leaders, and in 2014, 2015 and 2016 by the Choiseul Institute 7th, 4th and 2nd among the 100 African leaders under 40 years of age.

Ex-parliamentary from the Chamber of Counsels, president of the CDT, ex vice-president of the Morocco-France mixed commission of the Chamber. He was President of the regional commission of Human Rights in Rabat-Salé-Kenitra. He is the Advisor of the president of the National Council of Human Rights, Joint General Secretary of the Euro-Med Foundation, member of the International Secretariat of the Global Human Rights Forum and member of “Enterprise and Human Rights” in London. In addition, he is a member of the Moroccan National Commission of the Chart of National Education and Vocational Training and the president of the Safi Foundation.

Lawyer, Partner, Ionescu si Sava, a law firm based in Bucharest, which provides both consultancy and litigation service active in a wide range of industries, such as banking, financial services, automotive, pharmaceuticals, real estate and infrastructure. Previously, he was the Head of the Prime Minister’s Chancellery (during Victor Ponta government), where he worked, amongst others, at the integration between ministries and acted as coordinator of the projects developed by the prime minister. holds a bachelor’s degree in Romanian Law and is a member of the Bucharest Bar since 2009. He has also taken postgraduate studies in political management.

Mr. Hassane Saoudi is a retired Colonel of the Royal Gendarmerie, Consultant and Director of Securi-Consulting. He held the position of Chief of Studies and Legislation at the Royal Gendarmerie Headquarters as well as the title of Commander of the Royal Gendarmerie Training Centre in Marrakech. He was Commander of the Kenitra and Meknes regions. He obtained his master’s degree in Economic Intelligence and Business Security from the Institut National des Hautes Etudes de la Sécurité et de la Justice in 2012 and a global security diploma from the Institut National des Hautes Etudes de la Sécurité et de la Justice de Paris in 2010 and in the same year, he obtained a certificate of expertise in psychocriminology from the Institut de Hautes Etudes de Criminologie de Paris.

President of International Center for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies and Secretary General of the Ministry of Agriculture, Maritime Fisheries, Rural Development and Forest, Morocco. Doctor of Agricultural Sciences and Agricultural Engineer, Dr. Sadiki is also a Professor of Genetics at the Hassan II Institute of Agronomy and Veterinary Medicine. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the International Platform for Agrobiodiversity Research and a member of the Scientific Council of the International Center for Agricultural Research and Development. He is Morocco’s representative on the Board of Governors of the International Fund for Agricultural Development.

Director of Research, Partnerships and Events at Policy Center for the New South. Prof. Rahmouni is an international affiliated professor at NYU (USA) as well as a visiting professor at Holy Spirit University (Lebanon) and at International trade and Law Institute of Pusan National University (South Korea). She teaches geopolitics at Grenoble School of Management (France). She contributed to numerous books, such as Femme et entrepreneur: c’est possible ! (Pearson, 2012) , Géopolitique de la Méditerranée and Géopolitique de la condition féminine (PUF, 2013). Bouchra gave lectures in world forums and prestigious institutions in France, Hong Kong, US, South Korea, Lebanon and Switzerland.

President, Federation of Trade and Services, CGEM and General Manager of the communication consultancy agency Par3com. She has more than 20 years’ experience in audit, marketing and communication strategy. During her career, she has accompanied and advised more than a hundred public and private institutions in the development of strategic projects at the national and international levels. She is both Vice-President and General Secretary of the Moroccan Association of Exporters (ASMEX), a member of the Board of Directors of the Moroccan Student Foundation, and currently President of the CGEM Trade and Services Federation, which has more than 1780 members. 

Professor of Business Management and Human Resources at the University Mohammed V, Rabat. She was Advisor to the President of Mohammed V University and consulted on projects pertaining to development, education and governance with NGOs and institutions including the UNDP, Africa Humanitarian Action, the Ministry for Civil Service and Administrative Reform where she served in the Cabinet of the Minister in charge of UN and UNDP projects in the MENA region. Dr. Motii earned her Master’s in Public Affairs at the American University in Washington DC, and her Doctorat d’Etat in Economic Sciences from the Faculty of Juridical, Economic and Social Sciences in Casablanca.

Mustapha Metaich is a graduate of the Central School of Paris and a Doctor in Industrial Engineering. He is co-founder and managing Partner at EMC. He teaches Data Science at the Central School of Casablanca. He began his career in France as an engineer in many multinational firms such as TECHNIP and EDF before joining international management consulting companies. At the same time, he is a visiting professor in the Central School of Paris, the University of Paris 13 and ISCAE. He is also President of the Association of the ex-Centrale Students in Morocco. He was an administrator of the Central School of Casablanca and president of the “Forum Centralien” think tank. 

President and Founder of Casablanca Media Partners Group. Mostapha Mellouk started his career in media with the launch of 2M TV Channel where he managed programs, news and sports. He established and lead Media Com before joining Lagardère Group as Director of educational tv channels owned by Qatar Foundation and the Aljazeera Group. He was President of Medi1Sat TV. He is also Smart Studio’s creator and he co-founded the Copeam. He was designated African Media Leader in 2012, and was elected Member of the International Academy of Television, Arts & Science in New York. He chairs the communication commission of the CGEM.

Head of the International Economic Department, Bank Al-Maghrib. Since 2007, Hicham Masmoudi has been in charge of the International Economic Affairs Department at Bank Al-Maghrib in Rabat. He was also a statistician at Nielsen Company and a part-time lecturer at Hassan II University in Casablanca: Master 1st year and 2nd year”Econometrics Applied to Macro and Microeconomic Modelling”. He holds a Master (DESA) in Applied Econometrics for Macro and Micro-Economic Modelling from Hassan II University in Casablanca and obtained his Applied Bachelor’s degree in Econometrics at Hassan II University.

Prof. Taoufik Marrakchi is a retired Colonel-Major of the Royal Armed Forces. Born in Sfax (Tunisia), he got his PhD in International Law and International relations. He joined the Royal Military academy in Meknes and graduated in 1976 then graduated as a Military Chief of staff in the Military school of Kenitra in 1988. He obtained another certificate from Joint Defense College in Paris in 1997. He taught Geopolitics, Strategy, Security and Defense and its international institutions and History of crises and contemporary conflicts in many institutions, such as: the Moroccan Diplomacy Academy (AMED), the Royal School of Gendarmerie Officers (EROG) and the Royal Naval School (ERN). 

H.E.M Li Li is an Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Morocco after a long career and responsibility positions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China. H.E.M Li Li has accumulated extensive experience, through his diplomatic missions, in the African continent, particularly in Mali, the Republic of Mauritius and the Kingdom of Morocco. Mr. Li Li holds a Master in Law.

Secretary General of the Ministry of Reform of Administration and Public Service. Mr. Ahmed Laamoumri started at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, then joined the Ministry of the Economy and Finance, and later the Ministry of Public Service and Modernization of Administration. He then became Director of Studies, Communication and Cooperation in the Ministry of charge of modernization of the administration and Secretary General of the Ministry of Reform Administration and Public Service. He has an engineering Degree in Quality Management from L’Ecole des Mines in France and another in Legal and Industrial Metrology from L’Ecole Supérieure de Métrologie in Paris.

Former Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Issues and Head of Delegation to Six Party Talks of the Republic of Korea (ROK). Prior to this position, Ambassador Kim was the Deputy Minister for Political Affairs at the ROK Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Previously he was Secretary to the President for Policy Coordination and Deputy Secretary-General of the NSC Secretariat, in the Office of National Security. Ambassador Kim is a graduate of the University of Virginia where he completed an M.A. in Foreign Affairs, and Seoul National University where he completed a B.A. in English Language and Literature.

After graduating from HEC Paris, Jawad Kerdoudi became a representative of the Moroccan Office de Commercialisation et d’Exportation in Hamburg and in New York where he also was in Charge of the Moroccan Consulate. Later, he worked in the OCE headquarters in Casablanca where he, among responsibilities, managed the Group’s wine subsidiary. In 2003, he created the Moroccan Institute of International Relations. He teaches International Trade and International Relations in Casablanca and Rabat. He wrote numerous articles and several books about Moroccan foreign trade, the Maghreb, and the Spanish model. He participated in several studies on the Euro-Mediterranean region.

Founder and Owner of Kreab Worldwide(1970), a global advisory firm with Financial, Corporate and Public Affairs communications experts in 30 countries, and Kunskapsskolan Education (1999) – personalized education for 40,000 students in 6 countries. He is a Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, IVA. He was Chef de Cabinet of ICC, the world business organization (1973-1981), Chairman of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (2010-2014) and Board member of the Nobel Prize Outreach (2011-2024). Recipient of the King of Sweden’s Medal of the Twelfth Dimension in Blue Ribbon for achievements as business leader and entrepreneur. He has a BA from the University of Stockholm and is a graduate of the Owner/President Management Program from Harvard Business School.

Dean of ESCA Ecole de Management, Casablanca, Morocco, he teaches communication strategy and change management. Advisor to several organizations, he also edited and authored several books. In 2011, Thami Ghorfi was appointed as an expert member of the Economic, Social and Environmental Council. He is Vice President of the AL AMANA foundation and a member of the board of the Development and Solidarity Council, the Amadeus Institute and the Academic Advisory Board of GBSN. He chairs the AACSB MENA Advisory Council and is part of International Academic Member of the EDAF Committee of the EFMD. He graduated from ISG-Paris and ESSEC Business School.

Deputy Head of Mission at the Mexican embassy in Morocco. Prior to that, she served in France, in Rome for the Vatican and in Brussels for the EU where she was in charge of political and multilateral affairs and representing Mexico in various international meetings. In Mexico, she was an advisor in the office of the vice-minister of Foreign Affairs. Before joining Foreign Service, she worked as an expert in the European Commission in Brussels and a consultant in many European think tanks and Mexican firms. She has a degree in International Relations from the National Autonomous University of Mexico and Masters in European Studies, Diplomatic Studies and Foreign Trade.

Director of American Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation. From 2014 to 2017, she was Director of Protocol, Head of the Division of Privileges and Immunities from December 2014 to December 2016, Head of Division in charge of the Directorate of Protocol from January 2017 to September 2017, and Head of the Divisions of Privileges and Immunities and Ceremonial from Sept 2017 to November 2017. From 2013 to 2014, she was Head of Department of the Community Institutions at the European Union Directorate. From 2009 to 2013, she held the position of Communications Advisor and Political Advisor at the Moroccan Embassy in Madrid.

State Engineer in Telecommunications from the Polytechnic University of Madrid and an MBA graduate from the National School of Ponts et Chaussées Paris, Yasmina Bemessaoud manages the Market Intelligence and Strategic Studies Department of Masen. She is in charge of the strategic planning of the company and the development of strategic and market studies necessary for the development of Masen’s activities. She spent the first part of her career in Spain as Chair of Regulation at the Polytechnic University of Madrid, Telefónica, Ernst & Young, before joining the National Agency of Regulation Telecommunications in Morocco, then Masen, in 2013. 

Secretary General, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Morocco. She has accumulated more than 20 years of experience in many high level positions in both the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Youth and Sports. After working at the General Inspection of Finances, Ms Benali moved to the Budget Department as Head of service of the productive sectors and Head of the division of the social sectors and National Director of the Center of Excellence for gender budgeting in which she was member of the Steering Committee of the National Strategy for Equality. Nadia Benali holds a Ph.D. in Economics and a Post Graduate Diploma in Management from ISCAE.