Category: Invited guests

Vice President for Academic Affairs at Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane. After teaching for 10 years at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, he joined Al Akhawayn University in January 2010, first as an Associate Professor in International Studies, before he was appointed Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences in June 2012. He is the author of academic articles in English, French and Portuguese in various IR journals. He is the author with João Pontes Nogueira of Teoria das Relações Internacionais: Correntes e Debates, which is in its 10th Edition, and the editor of a forthcoming volume with L.H.M. Ling and Arlene B. Tickner, International Relations Theory: Views Beyond the West. He holds a Phd in International Studies from the University of Miami, Florida.

Entrepreneur and founder of New Work Lab, an innovation lab for entrepreneurs, students and corporations. She develops new creative models in education and has created startup accelerators and coworking spaces in Morocco. She just started a career accelerator that aims at empowering employees and develop their intrapreneurial mindset: School of Changes. She is a disruptive thinker who is committed to the economic and social development of Morocco.  Before NWL launching, Fatim Zahra Biaz worked for a few years as a change manager consultant in Paris. She graduated from Edhec Business School and Harvard Kennedy School.

Economist on the Korea/Sweden desk of the Economics Department at OECD. She previously worked in the Structural Policy Analysis Division of the same Department at OECD, at the French Ministry of Labour and at the French National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) in the Short-Term Economic Analysis and in the Economic Studies Departments. Her research interests focus on the subjects of international trade, external imbalances, labour market and digitalization. Presently, she is finishing her PhD in Economics at the Université Paris-Dauphine.

After 11 years working in investment banking, from 2000 until 2008 Eduardo Queiroz dedicated his career to improve the lives of children and families in different countries by serving as an Instructor, Executive Director and Counselor of Outward Australia, Outward Bound Brazil and Outward Bound Mexico. From 2009 to 2011, Eduardo acted as the Special Advisor to the Secretary of Education of the State of São Paulo. Subsequently, from 2011 until October 2018, Eduardo led the Maria Cecilia Souto Vidigal Foundation in Brazil as the Chief Executive Officer. In the past 5 years, he has also served as a volunteer member of the Board of United Way Brazil, ESPRO and Outward Bound Brazil. Eduardo holds a degree in Business Administration, a Specialization in Finance from Getúlio Vargas Foundation, as well as a Master’s in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government where he was a Mason and Lemann fellow.

Founder and Chief Executive Officer of EON, which aims at pioneering the future of connected and circular fashion with a global Internet of Things framework for Digital Identity and embedded RFID technology. Before launching EON, she was the Senior Vice President of Global Business Development at Delos, a technology and real estate start-up. After supporting the launch of Delos’ International WELL Building Institute in the US, she lead the global expansion of WELL Building Standard through strategic partnerships in Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East. Prior to joining Delos, she worked at Jonathan Rose Companies where she consulted on smart cities and urban design and development. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Georgetown University.

Director of the Centre for Learning Resources in Pune, India. He has run banking businesses around the world; run and set up residential and day schools; been a nonprofit manager; coached senior corporate and non-corporate executives in enhancing personal and organizational effectiveness; worked with and coached management teams, parents and teachers of educational institutions; and provided strategy advice to for-profit and nonprofit organizations. He earned a degree in electrical engineering from the National Institutes of Technology (NIT), Srinagar and a PGDM from the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad.

Senior Fellow, Policy Center for the New South. Mhammed Dryef has held several responsibility positions including: Chief of staff at the Ministry of the Interior, Governor Director of the Casablanca Urban Agency, Director General for National Security, Director General for Urban Planning and Territorial Planning, Wali- Director General for Interior Affairs, and Wali of Fez, Casablanca, and Laayoune. In addition, Mhammed Dryef has published a book on urbanization in Morocco as well as various studies on decentralization,  regionalization, and the evaluation of public policies. He holds a PHD in Public Law from the University of Grenoble, a diploma from the National School of Public Administration and a post graduate diploma in private law.

Vice Dean of the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University and Senior Fellow at the Policy Center for the New South. He is President of the Moroccan Association of Agricultural Economics and associate member of the General Council of Agricultural Development of Morocco. Prof. Doukkali performed several consultancies with the Ministry of Agriculture of Morocco, and national and international organizations (World Bank, FAO, UNDP) and several Mediterranean and African countries. Prof. Doukkali collaborates with several national research institutions, such as INRA-Morocco, and with international research institutions, such as CIHEAM, CIRAD, CEMAFREF, IFPRI and ICARDA.

Diplomatic Advisor to the President of the United Arab Emirates. He joined the Federal Government in 2006 as Minister of State for Federal National Council Affairs, and was later appointed Minister of State for Foreign Affairs. He was Chairman of the National Elections Committee, Chairman of the National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Al Owais Cultural Foundation and a member of the Board of Trustees of the Anwar Gargash Diplomatic Academy (AGDA). He received his Ph.D. from King’s College, Cambridge and holds Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Political Science from George Washington University.

Professor of quantitative methods and social economics at the Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech, an economist, as well as Senior Fellow at OCP Policy Center who focuses on Applied econometrics, labor market, economics of education and development economics. He is also the director of GRES (Economic and Social Research Group) at the same university. His research focuses on econometric methodologies applied to social sciences (labor economics, economics of education and Development). Mr. Ibourk’s doctoral thesis looks into the “Contribution to Econometrics through the Labor Market Matching Process: Macro and Microeconometric Approaches to the Moroccan Labor Market.”

Senior Fellow at the Policy Center for the New South and former Professor at Mohammed V University in Rabat. He is a founding member of the Centre Marocain de Conjoncture and of the Groupement d’Etudes et de Recherches sur la Méditerrannée. He is a member of the Research Group within the Euro-Mediterranean Universities Networks. He acted as Adviser to the Prime Minister and to the Minister of Economy and Finance. He acts as independent expert to the Moroccan Competition Council and the Moroccan Authority for the fight against Corruption. He wrote various publications about economic and social development and international economic relations.

Senior Fellow, Policy Center for the New South. Jamal Machrouh is professor of international relations at the National School of Business and Management, Ibn Toufaïl University, Kénitra and Senior Fellow at the Policy Center for the New South, formerly OCP Policy Center, where he focuses on Geopolitics and International Relations issues. Mr. Machrouh is lecturer at the Royal College of Advanced Military Studies of Kénitra and at Södertörn University of Stockholm, Sweden. He is the author of a book titled Justice and Development under World Trade Organization and of various articles dealing with international relations and geopolitics.

Austrian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Morocco. He served as an Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative of the Austrian Representation to the OSCE in preparation and during the Austrian chairmanship of the OSCE in 2017. He held positions at the Austrian Embassies in Norway, Spain and Hungary. He also worked at the Austrian Permanent Representation with the EU and held several positions at the Austrian Minister of Foreign Affairs. He holds a degree in Business Administration and International Economics from the University of Economics, Vienna, as well as the Diploma from the Diplomatic Academy, Vienna.

Member of the French Parliament, Representing the Hauts-de-Seine department since june 2017. He was Associate Professor at the Institut d’Etudes politiques de Paris (Sciences-Po) between 2002 and 2015 and Member of the European Parliament between 1989 and 2007. He was Chief Counsellor at the French Court of Audit and Senior Auditor at the French Court of Audit. He graduated from the Ecole nationale d’administration. He received an Advanced degree in Contemporary Literature and also graduated from the Institut d’Études politiques de Paris (Sciences-Po).

Executive Director of the Global Compact Network Morocco. He is also Project Coordinator at the Mohammed VI Foundation for the Protection of the Environment and Senior Advisor of the Climate Change Program of the Center for International Law of Sustainable Development. Previously, he was Special Advisor to the Presidency of COP22, and worked for Valyans Consulting and the International Air Transport Association. He has extensive knowledge in the fields of engineering, law, finance, climate change and sustainable development. He has been honored as an African Leader by the Obama Foundation, and as an Emerging Leader by the OCP Policy Center.

Director of National Evaluation Authority in the Higher Council of education training and research in Morocco (Appointed in 2014), Former President of Hassan II University Mohammedia Casablanca, Former dean and Professor of Sociology in Mohamed V University Agdal Rabat. She is also member of the Moroccan Royal Academy. She has been an invited lecturer or presenter at research activities at universities in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East.  She was recognized with an honorary degree honoris causa from Indiana State university in USA in 2006, from Liege University  Belgium  and from Université Paris Ouest Nanterre in Paris France in 2010.

Entrepreneur at Accenture, leading Open Innovation for Africa, where she grants start-ups market access opportunities to accelerate their growth. She founded the Born to Succeed program that is curbing the steep youth unemployment rate in South Africa through education, mentorship and by forming private sector alliances. She is the former Deputy Chairman of Advancement of Black Accountants South Africa Bursary Fund, which addresses the challenges faced by previously disadvantaged learners in accessing institutions of higher learning due to funding constraints. In 2016, she was selected from a pool of 4000 applicants from South Africa to participate in the Mandela Washington Fellowship in the U.S. She also represented South Africa at the World Bank Youth Summit 2016, in Washington DC by sharing her EdTech platform called ‘Khwela’. Amongst other accolades she is a Sustainable Development Goals ambassador inaugurated by Ambassador Dessima Williams in Canada, a Play Your Part Ambassador with Brand South Africa and Mzansi’s top 100 inspiring and aspiring leaders of 2017.

Founder and CEO, EMPEOPLE. She focuses on the role of youth in poverty reduction and social inclusion in Africa. She has been involved with social entrepreneurship and empowerment of youth and women for the past 12 years. Working with non-profit organizations as a volunteer, a professional and a consultant, with over 6 years of focus on youth employability to solve one of the biggest issues of Africa: unemployment. In 2015, she created SIDE, Social Impact and Development Employment, a social business focused on youth unemployment. In 2016, she founded EMPEOPLE, that stands for Empower People. She worked on women empowerment, education, youth engagement in public affairs, rural development, and oasis preservation, to finally focus her energy on youth empowerment. Former Program Director of Enactus Morocco. Previously, she was the administrative and financial assistant of project conducted by the UNDP, related to Climate Change Adaptation in Oasis Areas in Morocco.

Senior Fellow, OCP Policy Center, who focuses on Energy, renewable energy, projects development, valuation and financing and structuring. Founder of GPower Consultants and an expert in energy planning, and projects development, valuation, financing and structuring. He has 18 years of combined experience in energy projects and investment banking.  In his last position, he was Director in charge of Renewable Projects development, Planning and Strategy at Office National de l’Electricite (ONE) and member of its executive committee. Prior to that, he was Executive Director at Swiss Re in New York and London, and held the same position at Lehman Brothers and various other international financial.

Vice-Chairman of SUN Group, a diversified global group, with both operating and investment companies active in areas including Private Equity, Renewable Energy, Oil & Gas, High Technology, Gold Mining and Real Estate. He is Executive Chairman of the Global Education & Leadership Foundation (tGELF). He serves on numerous boards and councils. He is a member of the BRICS Business Council delegation and leads the Indian business representation to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. He sits on the National Council and the International Council of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and is Chairman of the CII Central Asia Committee. Shiv also serves as the co-chairman of the Aerospace and Defence Council at the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry. He studied at Eton College, earned a BA in economics from Brown, an MBA/MA with distinction from the Wharton School of Business and the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania.

Managing Director of JMS Advisory – Directorship and Financial Services Advisory. Until mid 2022, he has held various senior management positions across BNP Paribas international network. His last position was CEO/Chairman of BNP Paribas Middle East and Africa for Corporate and Institutional Banking from 2015 to 2022. Between 2009 and 2015, he was CEO of BNP Paribas in India. Before joining BNP Paribas, he was Deputy CEO/Chief Risk Officer Asia-Pacific for Crédit Lyonnais, Calyon and Fortis Bank (1999-2009). Between 1995 – 1999, he was Country Manager of Crédit Lyonnais in Thailand and, between 1990 – 1995, Regional Manager of BFCE for South-East Asia based in Singapore. He has always been an active member of the Foreign Trade Advisors of France (CCEF, an official representative of the French business community overseas). He was Chairman of the Hong Kong Committee and is now President of the Bahrain Committee. He is Honorary Chairman of the Indo-French Chamber of Commerce and also a member of the Advisory Board of the French-Bahraini Chamber of Commerce. He graduated from ESSEC.

Ms. Hayden is a licensed attorney who has spent thirty years in public service and law enforcement serving as a senior advisor to members of the US government – Justice, State, Treasury, Intelligence and Defense – and to International Organizations – International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the International Anti-Corruption Academy (IACA). A former Senior Prosecutor for the US Department of Justice, she also served as US DOJ’s first National Security Coordinator and was the DOJ representative to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global standard setter for combatting money laundering and terrorist finance. As a prosecutor at the ICTY, Ms. Hayden established the UN’s first financial investigation unit and led the financial investigation of Slobodan Milosevic. She currently provides technical assistance and advice to organizations in the public and private sectors, in areas such as integrity building, anti-corruption and anti-money laundering and is on the expert council for PMI IMPACT, and is working with an organization on combatting wildlife trafficking.

Mercy Ships International Diplomatic Ambassador for Africa since 2022. She facilitates partnerships with governments, diplomatic entities and communities, supporting Mercy Ships’ mission to deliver free medical and surgical care to those in need across the African continent. In May 2022, she played a key role in the christening of the Global Mercy™ – the organization’s flagship hospital ship, in Dakar, Senegal. A distinguished pediatrician and reproductive health specialist, Dr Tuakli was the first African woman clinical professor in Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. Her work in there contributed to the creation of a special Community Medicine Department at Children’s Hospital of Boston. She was the Founder and Medical Director of CHILD Accra in Ghana, and her contributions to child health education in Africa and the USA have been internationally lauded. As the first female Rotary president in Ghana, she advanced child protection legislation for Africa’s children, earning recognition from the African Union. She also initiated a Rotary funded surgical rotation that has grown into an accredited WHO-supported Safe Surgery in Africa course onboard the Mercy Ships fleet. She has served on several international boards, including Mercy Ships, Zenith Bank, the Global Virus Network and CarePoint. In 2022 Dr. Tuakli retired as the first female and non-white Chair of United Way Worldwide’s international board of trustees. She is an acclaimed leader and contributor to global health, and the recipient of numerous awards, including a UN Global Citizens Award and several lifetime achievement honours.

President and Chief Executive Officer of United Way Worldwide, the world’s largest privately-funded nonprofit. Under Gallagher’s leadership, United Way is a global leader in community change, an approach that brings people together to create more opportunities for all. In 2002, Gallagher became president and CEO of United Way of America, which merged with United Way International to form United Way Worldwide in 2009. Supported by nearly 3 million volunteers and 9 million donors, United Way fights for the health, education and financial stability of people in nearly 1,800 communities worldwide.

Journalist, Chair Publishing conglomerate. In 1992, he bought La Tribune, which he merged with La Cote Desfossés to create La Tribune Desfossés. The distribution of La Tribune thus went from 43 500 to 70 457 paid copies. In 1996, Georges Ghosn, associated with Claude Solarz, an industrialist specializing in the recovery of waste paper, took over Le Nouvel Économiste. From 2012, he resumed business restructuring and bought Swisscosmetics Ch. In June 2018, he bought the weekly magazine VSD from the Prisma Press group.