Category: Invited guests

Before her appointment as Minister of Trade and Industry, Soraya Hakuziyaremye was Senior Vice President in Financial Institutions/Financial Markets Risk at ING Bank in London. She also worked in various senior positions at BNP Paribas Group in Paris, Fortis Bank and the Bank of New York Mellon in Brussels. Minister Hakuziyaremye also served as Senior Advisor to Rwanda’s Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2012 to 2014. She was a board member of Ngali Holdings as well as the Brussels-Africa Hub. She brings a rich experience in global banking and advisory as well as international exposure to help local businesses become more competitive. She holds a postgraduate degree in International Management from the Thunderbird Graduate School of Global Management at Arizona State University in the United States and a Masters in Business Engineering (Ingénieur de Gestion) from the Solvay Business School at the Université Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium.

Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Morocco. Shambhu Santha Kumaran joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1995. His diplomatic assignments abroad include Political Counsellor in Kathmandu (2007-2009) and Deputy High Commissioner to South Africa (2009-2012). At Headquarters, he was Deputy Secretary (West Europe Division) handling relations with the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain as well as the Commonwealth from 2002-2004. From 2012-2016, he was Director (East Asia/China), Joint Secretary (Establishment) and Joint Secretary (Eurasia) in MEA. During January 2016-May 2019, he was on deputation to the Ministry of Defense as Joint Secretary (Planning and International Cooperation). He holds a Bachelors Degree in English Literature from Kerala University as well as an MA in International Studies and Master of Philosophy in Diplomatic Studies from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.

Dr Mathias Harebamungu is the Ambassador of the Republic of Rwanda in Senegal. Doctor of physical and urban planning from the Université Michel de Montaigne Bordeaux 3, former Minister of State at the Rwandan Ministry of Education, former Secretary-General at the same Ministry after an academic career.

Member of Parliament for the 9th constituency of French people living outside France (Maghreb and West Africa). A member of the “Liberté et territoires” group, he was a member of the Defense and Armed Forces Committee before joining the French National Assembly’s Finance Committee. He was a member of the special PACTE committee and the committee of inquiry on the fight against extreme right-wing groups. He was also the press officer of Ségolène Royal, candidate in the 2007 presidential election; responsible for communication and the press within the Socialist Group of the Senate; ministerial advisor to Thierry Repentin, first Minister for vocational training and then for European integration; communication and press relations advisor in the Senate and head of the press department of Caisse des Dépôts. He is a graduate of the Institute of Political Studies (IEP) in Aix-en-Provence, France.

Director of Government Affairs for Middle East and Africa at Philip Morris International, based in Lausanne, Switzerland. Borhann is responsible for leading and providing strategic advice to 69 countries on public affairs and policy to advance the company’s objective to design a smoke-free future. He started his career in 2002 in Paris, as a Marketing Specialist for Africa at Western Union Financial Services, the worldwide money transfer leader. During his 10 years at Western Union he worked in cross-functional positions with increased responsibility in several markets in Africa, both in Marketing and Business Development. He led the North Africa Region as Senior Country Manager. In 2012, Borhann joined Philip Morris International as the Head of Corporate Affairs for Tunisia and Libya, based in Tunis. In 2015, he was named Regional Sales Manager for Morocco, before moving to Lausanne in 2017.

Emergent Technology CTO, Global Strategy Advisor, Professor in Advanced Technologies. Founder of Aspirational Futures, she specializes in the application and integration of Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence and associated emergent technologies for business and societal benefit.

Ambassador of Burkina Faso in Morocco. A magistrate by training, Ambassador KOTE Zakalia has held several positions in the courts (Prosecutor, President of the Court) and in the judicial administration (Directorate of Studies and Planning). He was Director of Cabinet of the Minister of Foreign Affairs (March 1999 – January 2006), Secretary-General of the Government and the Council of Ministers (January 2006 – May 2007), Minister of Justice Keeper of the Seals (May 2007 – January 2011). He was President of Chamber at the Court of Auditors until his appointment as Ambassador in Rabat (October 2016).

Nadia El Mahjoubi is a diplomat and First Secretary of Foreign Affairs, seconded to The Royal Cabinet as collaborator of the Counsellor of His Majesty The King Mohammed VI, Mr. Andre Azoulay. Prior to that, Nadia El Mahjoubi was advisor of the chargé de mission Minister Youssef Amrani at The Royal Cabinet. She was advisor in charge of Africa at the office of the Secretary General of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Morocco and desk officer at the African Department for political affairs in charge of West and Central Africa. She has a degree in Public Policies Management from the University of Mohammed V in Rabat and from the Moroccan Academy of Diplomatic Studies.

Director of Corporate Affairs in charge of Fiscal and Regulatory issues, Public Relations, and Illicit Trade Prevention for Philip Morris Morocco that she joined in 2012. Previously in 2003, she joined the US embassy in Rabat as political analyst and during her eight-year career she also worked with the US State Department Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. In 2002 she joined the Environment and Development Agency in preparation for the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg. She studied at American schools of Rabat, Tangier, and Bonn and later graduated from Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane in International Relations and Women Studies. She also has a Masters in Education from Framingham University.

Ambassador of France to Morocco. Graduated from the Institute of Political Studies, Ambassador Le Gal worked as a first secretary at the French embassies in Tel Aviv and Madrid and became a technical advisor to the Minister Delegate for the Cooperation to the Francophonie. She was a counselor at the Permanent Representation of France to the EU Parliament in Brussels. She moved back to Africa to be Deputy Director for Central and Eastern Africa at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs. She was Consul General of France in Quebec City, then Africa Advisor to the Presidency of the Republic and Ambassador of France to Israel before coming to Morocco. She is an Officer of the Legion of Honor.

Polina is a passionate environmental entrepreneur, with two Master’s degrees in Chemistry and Renewable Energy (ocean energy). As an active traveler (68 countries) and scuba-diver (100 m), Polina saw many beautiful places ruined by negative anthropogenic impacts and based on her personal experience and internal feelings, she decided to change her career’s path from “black” side of fossil fuel to “green” side of renewable energy. After a successful 14-year career in the oil and gas industry (ex-Schlumberger), Polina decided to make a fundamental career change and to do something useful for the planet. Both her training and vast working experience led her to found HelioRec. HelioRec is an innovative startup in the field of floating solar technologies.

Masen’s Cooperation and International Development Director since September 2015. Among other responsibilities, Ali is in charge of designing and implementing an international projection strategy for Masen. In his early roles at BNP Paribas, Accenture and UTC, Ali gained extensive experience of managing internationally oriented corporate restructuring and business development projects. On his return to Morocco, Ali founded Next Management, a company that specializes in restructuring and transformation projects, and then took over the general management of MCS, a subsidiary of UTC. Ali Zerouali graduated in engineering with a degree in organizational management from Ecole des Mines de Paris & HEC Paris.

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.