Regional Regulators’ Forum Miami 2019

Alee Fa’amoe is an independent consultant.  He was the Deputy CEO and Executive Director ICT for OfReg, the newly formed (January 2017) converged utilities regulator overseeing ICT, fuels, electricity, and water industries in the Cayman Islands until August 2020.

Mr Fa’amoe has a broad background in technology, operations, and management and has spent 20 years in the telecommunications industry, working as an industry expert on telephone numbering and network operations. He spent several years at Deloitte Cayman as Chief Operating Officer where he was responsible for HR, marketing, IT, operations, and finance departments. He also served as a subject matter expert on client consulting engagements, and worked with Deloitte offices in several Caribbean locations with operational matters.

Mr Fa’amoe was previously appointed Managing Director of the Information and Communications Technology Authority (ICTA) in 2013, which has since become part of OfReg.

Dr Allyson Leacock, Chairman of the Barbados Broadcasting Authority and Director of National Transformation Initiative, Government of Barbados, is also an independent media and human development consultant. She led a coalition of 112 Media Houses in 24 Caribbean countries for 12 years and trained over 2000 Caribbean broadcasters. She served on the Executive Board of the Global Media AIDS Initiative (GMAI) and was elected for 2 terms as Chairman of the Global Steering Committee for the World AIDS Campaign. She was also Cultural Affairs Specialist at the US Embassy covering the Caribbean and Officer-In-Charge and Student Coordinator at the University of the West Indies Distance Education Centre (UWIDEC), now the Open Campus.

Dr Allyson Leacock was conferred with the Order of the Republic (OR) in Barbados National Honours on 30 November 2023. The award was given by the President of Barbados – In ‘recognition of sterling contribution to broadcasting, media relations, corporate communications, training, human resource development and educational technology, as well as distinguished service to Barbados as Head of National Transformation Initiative’.

Dr Leacock has a wide-ranging professional background including in executive management in corporate communications, media, needs assessment, training, human resource development and leadership, as well broadcast media including production and presentation as TV News Anchor, and as General Manager of the Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation.

She holds Masters and Ph.D. degrees in Educational Technology, Concordia University, Canada and BA (Double First Class Honours) in English and Education and the Diploma in Education (Dip.Ed with distinction) from Stirling University, UK. Her training also includes Diplomas in Human Resource Management, Facility Management, Arts Management and Alternative Dispute Resolution.

A Former national athlete, gymnast, dancer and actress, Dr Leacock is trained in sign language, is a volunteer with Special Olympics and Barbados Council for the Disabled.

Dr Leacock is also Former Chair of the International Institute of Communications Small Nations Regulators Forum 2021-2022.

Andrea Gita Millwood Hargrave is an independent consultant in the field of regulation across the communications ecosystem, with particular emphasis on emerging trends in technologies and consumer behaviour.

An Associate of the Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy, University of Oxford, and a Member of the Working Group on Information Access (part of UNESCO’s IFAP Programme), Andrea stepped down as the IIC’s Director General in 2020, having run its regulatory programme for over twenty years. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Andrea served as a regulator for content delivery organisations in the UK for many years and has published widely on communications policy in an international context, having acted as an Expert for both the European Union and the Council of Europe.

Antonio Martusciello is a Commissioner at the Authorità per le Garanzie nelle comunicazioni (AGCOM) in Italy, having served first from 2010 to 2012 when he was re-elected. He previously worked as a business executive in the media and communications field and was the President of Mistral Air Srl, an Italian Post Office owned company.

During the XII legislature Mr Martusciello was elected deputy for the first time, and was reelected during the XV legislature. He was involved in the Budget Committee with the office of the Parliamentary Committee Opinions. In the same legislature Mr Martusciello was a member of the Commission for the reorganization of the Italian broadcasting system.

In the XIII legislature Mr Martusciello joined the Foreign Affairs and Anti-Mafia Committees. In the XIV legislature Mr Martusciello was appointed First Secretary for the Environment and subsequently promoted to Deputy Minister for Cultural Heritage .

Mr Martusciello graduated in Science of Public Administrations and is a member of the Commission Services and Products. He also lectures at the University Suor Orsola Benincasa University of Naples on ‘New Media and Consumer Guarantees’ and at the University Sapienza of Rome on ‘The Cultures and Industries of Television’.

Botlenyana Mokhele has a wealth of experience in broadcasting media policy and regulation from a career spanning over two decades. Prior to being appointed to the Council of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), she was a Principal Consultant at Pygma Consulting based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Before becoming a consultant, Ms Mokhele served in a number of senior positions at the Department of Communications (DoC), including that of the Chief Director 2010 Broadcasting, responsible for implementation of the South African Government’s ICT Guarantees for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Prior to this she served as Deputy Executive Director of the National Association of Broadcasters and Manager at Broadcasting Policy Research and Development at ICASA. During her tenure in both positions, Ms Mokhele contributed towards broadcasting policy and ICT legislative processes in South Africa, and served on the country’s Digital Migration Working Group.

Ms Mokhele has a Master’s in Public Policy from the University of the Witwatersrand. She has Honours in counselling psychology from the University of South Africa (UNISA), a Postgraduate Diploma in information policy from UNISA, a Postgraduate Diploma in telecommunication studies from the Cable and Wireless College and an Advanced Project Management Diploma from Damelin College.

Ms Mokhele passed away in September 2020.

Carlton Smith was appointed as Acting Chief Executive Officer on 3 June 2020.  Mr Smith joined the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA) in December 2018 as Director of Electronic Communications, having previously spent 25 years with the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas (BCB), serving 16 years at the managerial level and eight (8) of those years in Executive Management Positions. Among the senior positions he held were Deputy General Manager of News, Current Affairs and Special Projects and Senior Deputy General Manager of Operations and Support. In 2010, Mr Smith led the planning team that developed the strategic approach for BCB’s transition from analogue to digital broadcasting.

He also served as the Local Organizing Committee Chairman for the Bahamas’ hosting of the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association (CBA) in 2008 and was inducted into the Ring of Honour of the CBA for contributions to the development of Public Service Broadcasting in The Bahamas.

A graduate of the London School of Journalism and Ravensbourne University in the United Kingdom, he also holds Graduate Certificates in Management Development and Business Communication.

Chris Anderson is an incident management and infrastructure protection expert with almost three decades of government, military, and private sector experience. He is currently the Federal Communications Commission’s Chief of Operations and Emergency Management. In this role, he is responsible for the Commission’s incident management activities, including the management of two operations centers, the FCC’s national security coordination, and Continuity of Operations and Government programs.

Prior to joining the Commission, Mr Anderson worked in critical infrastructure protection at the Department of Homeland Security and as a project and program manager for America Online. Mr Anderson began his career with a decade on active duty in the US Navy as a helicopter pilot. Mr Anderson retired from the Navy Reserve in August 2016.

Mr Anderson is a 2010 graduate of the National War College with a Master’s degree in National Security Strategy; he holds a second Master’s degree in Management Information Systems. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia.

Currently Chief Executive of the Regulatory Authority of Bermuda, Mr Williams brings 29 years of industry experience in electrical engineering and information technology, of which eight were at the senior executive level. He was former Chief Operating Office of an electric utility, Bermuda Electric Light Company, and his related accomplishments include his active participation in the consultation processes that resulted in the publication of the island’s energy green and white papers. These publications formed the basis for electricity regulatory reform in Bermuda and the creation of the Regulatory Authority of Bermuda.

As an advocate of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) education and electric transportation, Mr Williams keeps abreast of the latest advancements in these areas through continuous personal development.

Germán Darío Arias Pimienta is an Expert Commissioner for Commission for Communications Regulation of Colombia. He has acquired experience in the public and private sectors to building the telecommunications regulatory policies in Colombia.

His professional career started in 1995 with Empresas Públicas de Manizales in Colombia (Public utility companies of Manizales), where he played a key role in restructuring the institution, as a result of the entry into force of the Public Utility’s Act.

In August 2003, Mr Arias joined the Sector’s Development Directorate team of the Ministry of Communications. In that tenure, he contributed to the achievement of various regulatory challenges, namely: the opening of the long distance market, the interconnection between operators; the allocation of additional spectrum to mobile operators as a response to the growing service demand and to the freeing of frequency bands for the use of wireless access technologies, such as Wi-Fi.

Mr Arias returned to the private sector between 2007 and 2013, as Regulatory Affairs Manager with Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Bogotá (ETB), (Bogota’s Telecommunications Company), where he led the definition of a comprehensive regulatory strategy combining economic, legal, financial and technical elements and their implications on the company´s business strategy.

Mr Arias also served as Manager of the ICT and Agro Initiative at the Ministry of Information and Communication Technologies, intended to ensure that ICTs improve the quality of life of peasants while they help increase land productivity in Colombia.

Mr Arias is an Economist with a Masters Degree in Information Technology Management from Instituto Tecnológico de Monterrey and Specialisation in International Business Management.

Dr Heber Damian Martinez is an attorney by profession and Professor at the Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina (UCA) (Argentine Catholic University). Previously Dr Martinez was the corporate affairs and institutional relations manager for the Telefe Group, as well as Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Argentine Association of Television and Radio Broadcasters (ATA). He was also a member of the Board of Directors at the International Broadcasting Association and Chairman of the Employers’ Commission of Independent Communication Media (CEMCI). Dr. Martinez is one of the Vice-chairmen of the Study Group 16 – “Multimedia coding, systems and applications” of the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector.

Bio coming soon

Kirk Sookram holds the position of Deputy Chief Executive Officer at the Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (the Authority). He has been employed with the Authority since its inception in July 2004, starting as a Telecommunications Engineer, laying the foundation for the spectrum management mandate of the regulator and working his way up the corporate ladder to Executive Director Technology and Engineering and, in 2020, to the position he currently holds.

During his tenure at the Authority, he has specialized in the areas of spectrum management, wireless technologies, telecommunications regulation, ICT and broadband development, cost modeling, universal service initiatives and policy development.

Kirk is a national of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. His qualifications include a Bachelors of Science Degree (with Honours) in Electrical & Computer Engineering from the University of the West Indies and a Masters of Science Degree (Distinction) in Operational Telecommunications from Coventry University, United Kingdom.

Kirk has represented the Authority over the years at conferences and seminars and participated in panel discussions on telecommunications regulation, broadband development and emerging wireless technologies.

Kirk also held the position of the Chairman of the Caribbean Spectrum Management Task Force established by the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU) during the period 2016 – 2020, during which time he led the CTU preparatory work for the ITU World Radiocommunication Conference, 2019. He also held the position of Chairman of the Caribbean Spectrum Management Steering Committee of the CTU for the period 2020 – 2024.

Kirk also currently serves as Vice Chair of the ITU-T, Regional Group of the Americas for Study Group 2 – Operational aspects of telecommunications and ICTs.

Superintendent Gonzalez Wer is the Superintendent of Telecommunications in Guatemala, and has had a long career within the manufacturing industry, as well as being the President of Boards and Boards of Directors of several organizations and foundations. He is the current president of Funsek, a Foundation to support children with cleft lips and cleft palates.

Superintendent Gonzalez Wer has been advisor to the President of the Banco de Guatemala and a representative before the Monetary Board. He also has worked as a production manager and chief engineer of different companies.

With a Master’s Degree in Applied Economics from the American University, Washington DC USA, and a background as an industrial mechanical engineer from the University of San Carlos of Guatemala, he is Professor at the Rafael Landívar University, and the founder and first director of the course for University Technicians in Production Control.

María Dolores Souza has been with the broadcast regulator, the ‘National Television Council’ of Chile (CNTV), since 1993. As Head of Research, she is responsible for the development of research aimed at stimulating social debate on broadcast regulation; and for producing information for decision making and public policy. Ms Souza has developed the cultural and educational syllabus at CNTV; and initiated a Network of Regulatory Authorities in the Ibero- American region (PRAI).

Ms Souza earned her Doctorandus (Drs), from the Royal University of Leiden, The Netherlands, and has a Master’s degree in Communications from Diego Portales University (Chile) and Pompeu Fabra University, (Barcelona, Spain).

Ramiro Camacho Castillo was appointed Commissioner of the Federal Telecommunications Institute of Mexico (IFT) in March of 2019 for a period of nine years.

Commissioner Camacho has worked as an economist at the competition and telecommunications authorities of Mexico for the past twelve years. He was General Director of Economic Consulting at IFT and Deputy General Director of Economic Studies at the Competition Commission (COFECE). Previously, he was an Associated Professor at the University of Guadalajara for eleven years.

Commissioner Camacho holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics from the University of Guadalajara, and three master’s degrees: In Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison; in Operations Research from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM); and in Energy Economics from Scuola Superiore Enrico Mattei in Italy.

Ricardo Sheffield took up his post as General Prosecutor of the Mexican Federal Consumer Agency in December 2018. Prior to that he was Executive President of the Chamber of the Footwear Industry.

He was City Councilman in Leon from 1994-1997, State Congressman from 1997-2000 and Federal Congressman over two separate periods (2000-2003 and 2015-2018). Additionally Mr Sheffield was Undersecretary of Land for the Federal Government and Mayor of the city of Leon between 2009 and 2012. During this time, the city of Leon received the “Sustainable Transport Award 2011” from the UN, the “Ciudad campeona del agua” award in 2012, and was recognized as one of the ten best cities to live in in Latin America in 2012.

Mr Sheffield ran for Governor of Guanajuato with the Morena Party in 2018, finishing second in the election.

Mr Sheffield has a degree in law from the Universidad Iberoamericana, a Master from Harvard Law School, and is a candidate for a Doctorate in Procedural Law from Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon. As a specialist in private international law, he has been a professor and taught in many public and private universities and government institutions.

Bio coming soon

Suzy Sierra Ruiz has been the representative of the civil society at the National Television Authority since December, 2016.

With more than 15 years of experience in the Colombian public sector. Mrs Sierra has also held the position of Chief of the Information in the Ministry of Justice, and she also held several positions of Directive level in the Ministry of Information Technology and Communications. She also held the position of Director of International Legal Affairs and Head of the Legal Advisory Office at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Mrs Sierra is an attorney and law graduate from the Sergio Arboleda University, specialist in Commercial and Financial Law and in Marketing strategy. She also holds a Master’s degree in International Law at the University of Amsterdam and in Business Administration at the University of Viña del Mar.

Currently, Mrs Sierra is working on the policy of gender equity and citizenship in the audiovisual sector as her major interest.

Bio coming soon ….