By Clifford Agugoesi, Editor-in-Chief

No Nigerian youth is on the list as Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Doreen Bogdan-Martin Thursday announced the creation of her first Youth Advisory Board composed of 12 young digital experts and innovators aged 18 to 30. Instead, youths from Ghana and Kenya made the cut.

Cyber Era NG learns that representing different regions spanning the globe, these entrepreneurs, policy-makers, researchers and scientists will combine their expertise in artificial intelligence (AI), environmental issues, space, innovation, and youth empowerment to promote technology for good.

The ITU Secretary-General underscored the value of youth perspectives as governments and industry work together to connect the 2.6 billion people still offline around the world. “These brilliant young minds breathe passion and ambition, focused on one powerful goal: to bridge the digital divide in this generation,” she said upon announcement of the diverse 12-member advisory group.

The Youth Advisory Board will provide concrete, innovative, and inclusive recommendations to the ITU Secretary-General to enhance worldwide cooperation in strengthening global connectivity. At the heart of this initiative is the goal of giving young people a voice within the UN Digital Agency and bringing fresh perspectives to the table.

Appointed members of the ITU Secretary-General’s Youth Advisory Board are:

From Africa:

Daniella Darlington (Ghana), Co-founder of Copianto AI, passionate advocate for responsible technology development and Affiliate at All Tech Is Human.

Clinton Oduor (Kenya), Machine Learning Engineer at Amini, Co-Founder of Rhinos Lab, a wildlife conservation startup, and leading the TinyML Kenya community.

From the Americas:

Joshua Ingersoll (US), Space policy analyst, science educator, and youth STEM advocate, currently serving as Senior Regulatory Affairs Manager at Astranis Space Technologies Corp.

Melissa Michelle Munoz Suro (Dominican Republic), Director of Innovation at the Government Office of Information and Communication Technologies of the Dominican Republic (OGTIC)  and Coordinator of the Innovation Cabinet of the Dominican Republic.

From the Arab States:

Maitha Aljamris (UAE), International Cooperation Officer in the UAE’s telecommunications sector and member of the TDRA Youth Council.

Halima Ismail (Bahrain), Senior AI Data Scientist and part-time lecturer, deeply committed to advancing Internet technology, industry, and governance.

From Asia and the Pacific:

Hamza Hameed (Pakistan), Lawyer, Senior Practice Manager for Space & Policy at Access Partnership and presently serving as the Chair of the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC).

Khanh Linh Tong (Viet Nam), Deputy Director of the Center for Education Promotion and Empowerment of Women (CEPEW), committed to building digital capacity for people with disabilities, young women leaders, and people from ethnic minorities.

From the CIS Region:

Uliana Stoliarova (Russia), Specialist on ICT Development and Implementation at Russian Radio Research & Development Institute.

Nadir Atayev (Azerbaijan), Hardware Research Engineer and scientist, currently working in the Research and Development department at the Space Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (Azercosmos).

From Europe:

Roser Almenar (Spain), Co-Lead of the AI and Space Law research group, hosted by the Space Law and Policy Project Group of the Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC).

Okan Dursun (Türkiye), Pioneering figure in sustainability and education, Co-Founder of the Carbon Gate climate tech venture and founding member of Twin Science.

Members of the inaugural Youth Advisory Board were selected from a global pool of 850 exceptional candidates. They will serve in their individual capacities for a two-year term.