Thelma Quaye

Thelma Quaye is an ardent believer in the potential of Africa through the power of technology, coupled with the rich resources on the continent.

She leads the directorate of Digital Infrastructure, Skills and Empowerment at the Smart Africa Secretariat, an initiative by the heads of African countries to accelerate sustainable socioeconomic development and usher Africa into the knowledge economy.

Under this role, she oversees projects that will  connect every African country to at least 2 of its neighbours, make internet affordable and meaningful to citizens, develop conducive environments for regional cloud and data centers, encourage affordable communications through the One Africa Network project,develop policies to ensure the right balance between the protection of the countries’ sovereignty and harnessing the economy around data, develop the right policies with the support of stakeholders to ensure a safe cyber environment in Africa and build the digital skills capacity of citizens among others.

Prior to this role, she worked at Airtel Ghana Limited as the Chief Technical Officer responsible for the running of the Airtel network and she was the first female network director across the Airtel Africa group.

She has worked with the ITU, UN women and African Union as a lead trainer in coding and soft skills for girls from across Africa.

Her passion is to improve human capacity through ICT education, mentoring and coaching.

She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical & Electronics Engineering from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), an Executive Master of Business Administration, Strategic and Project Management from the Paris School of Management and an executive education at the prestigious INSEAD business school, France.