African Telecommunications Union
Management
Mr. John Omo
Secretary General
Mr. John Omo, Secretary General - African Telecommunications Union
Mr. John OMO is the Secretary-General of the African Telecommunications Union (ATU), the African Union’s specialized agency for telecommunications and ICTs’ development in Africa. He has held the position since January 2019. He leads the continental body entrusted with building consensus within African countries in the development of ICT policies, systems and services, and also in coordinating African participation in international ICT fora.
Mr. Omo has 33 years of experience as a lawyer and has contributed immensely to the development of local and international policies, legislation, agreements, and treaties in all areas of public service life but mainly in the area of ICTs. Mr. Omo received the Telecom Review Global Merit Leader Award in 2022 and the Merit Leader of the Year (non-profit organisation) Award in 2025, both conferred at the 2022 and 2025 editions of the Telecom Review Leaders’ Summit in Dubai, UAE.
African Telecommunications Union
Management
Mr. John Omo
Secretary General
Mr. John Omo, Secretary General - African Telecommunications Union
Mr. John OMO is the Secretary-General of the African Telecommunications Union (ATU), the African Union’s specialized agency for telecommunications and ICTs’ development in Africa. He has held the position since January 2019. He leads the continental body entrusted with building consensus within African countries in the development of ICT policies, systems and services, and also in coordinating African participation in international ICT fora.
Mr. Omo has 33 years of experience as a lawyer and has contributed immensely to the development of local and international policies, legislation, agreements, and treaties in all areas of public service life but mainly in the area of ICTs. Mr. Omo received the Telecom Review Global Merit Leader Award in 2022 and the Merit Leader of the Year (non-profit organisation) Award in 2025, both conferred at the 2022 and 2025 editions of the Telecom Review Leaders’ Summit in Dubai, UAE.
Directors
Eng. Kezias Kazuba Mwale
Director - Radiocommunications (Spectrum)
Mme. Meriem Slimani
Director - Development
Mr. Isaac Boateng
Director - Standardization
Mr. Djibrilla Ballo
Director - Finance and Administration
Eng. Kezias Kazuba Mwale, Director - Radiocommunications (Spectrum)
| He is the Director for Spectrum at the African Telecommunications Union (ATU) since 2012. He is renowned for his significant contributions to the remarkable transformation of the institution in all its crucial aspects: membership, technical, financial, administration, legal, IT systems, as well as, partnerships. Key indicators of the said transformation include 13 countries joining as Member States, more than 30 major companies joining as Associate Members, tripling of the annual budget, and even more importantly the delivery of measurable high-value to Membership. Some of his departmental achievements include: (1) Securing 2477MHz which is the highest amount of spectrum for broadband connectivity among all 6 regions of the world; (2) Recovering high-value satellite orbital resources for Africa benefiting 31 African countries; (3) Protecting Common-Heritage resources worth billions of USD via contention of the ITSO, (4) Adding a Significant number of 18, 326 anew FM broadcasting channels thereby powering FM Radio into the future, and (5) Making our region an equal player in global diplomacy on key digital resource of spectrum. He has a formidable CV: (1) notably three highly relevant degrees to the digital sector, namely; Bachelor in Telecomms, Master in Broadband and Mobile Comms, and an MBA; (2) many firsts at both ZICTA and ATU giving credence to his innovation prowess and deep understanding of issues; (3) secretary of the last three conferences of ATU supreme organ as evidence of his para legal skill; (4) conception and management of high-value programmes; (5) demonstrated constitutional and legal reform capability; (5) and many other key skills including consensus building aka diplomacy. |
Mme. Meriem Slimani, Director - Development
| Mme. Meriem Slimani is the Director for Development at the African Telecommunications Union (ATU). She joined the Union in 2015 as Director for Standardization and Development, and since the separation of the two portfolios in 2024 has focused on leading ATU’s development mandate. She brings more than fifteen years of experience in the development and management of IP broadband networks and internet services. Before joining ATU, she worked with Algérie Télécom and later at the Algerian Ministry of Post and ICT, where, as Director of the Information Society, she led major e-government projects, including the modernization and digitization of retail payment instruments, the establishment of the digital commerce register and the development of institutional portals. Mme. Slimani holds engineering and postgraduate degrees from the Ecole Nationale Polytechnique in Algiers, where she also taught econometrics earlier in her career. |
Mr. Isaac Boateng, Director – Standardization
| Mr. Isaac Boateng is the Director and Head of Standardization at the African Telecommunications Union (ATU), with over twenty-three (23) years of professional working experience in the digital technology and ICT space. He oversees the development and implementation of sector-specific initiatives, projects and programmes, and provides technical support to ATU Members in their preparations for global and regional conferences, including standardization-related engagements within the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the African Union (AU) and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs). Prior to joining ATU, Mr. Boateng served as Deputy Director in charge of Technical Regulations at the National Communications Authority of Ghana. He has been an ITU standardization expert since 2008, serving as Vice-Chair of the Telecommunication Standardization Advisory Group (TSAG), Vice-Chair of ITU-T Study Group 11 (signalling requirements and protocols), and Chair of the ITU-T SG11 Regional Group for Africa. He has edited several ITU Recommendations and Technical Papers. Mr Boateng holds an M.Sc. degree in Electronics and Computer Engineering (Brunel University, UK), with specialisation in Wireless Communication Systems, B.Sc. degree in Physics (Kwame Nkrumah University of Science & Technology, KNUST, GHANA) and former Adjunct Lecturer at the School of Technology, Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA). He has chaired and also been a member of several national, regional and international committees in standardization development. He chaired the ECOWAS Roaming Committee on Antifraud, a Board Member of the Radiation Protection Institute of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, a member of the Bank of Ghana Payment and Automation Systems Committee, a member of Ghana National ISO/IEC Technical Committee, just to mention a few. He is a member of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE), a member of Ghana Institute of Engineers (GhIE), a member of IEC/ISO/ITU/ILAC Accreditation Programme Task Force and an observer of 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). |
Mr. Djibrilla Ballo, Director - Finance and Administration
| He is the Director for Finance and Administration at the African Telecommunications Union (ATU) since August 2012. He oversees the Financial Management of the Union including strategic planning, Annual budgeting, Financial Management, Audit of the Accounts and coordination of the ATU Administrative Council and its related committees’ Activities/meetings. Mr. Ballo significantly contributed to the financial stability, transparency and Accountability in Management of the Resources of the Union as well as establishment and implementation of the strong Internal Control system of the Union. Prior to joining ATU, Mr. Ballo worked at the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications of Cameroon: Central African Backbone Program-Component of the Republic of Cameroon, as Deputy Head of Finance and Administration. Mr. Ballo holds a MSc. Degree in Finance; MSc. Degree in Economics; specialized in Monetary policies and Banking, Bachelor Degree in Economics, Bachelor Degree in Applied Accounting and a Certified Chartered Accountant. He represents ATU in regional and international processes, including engagements with the International Telecommunication Union and the African Union, and has contributed to strengthening the Union’s financial governance and its work on digital financial inclusion. |
Eng. Kezias Kazuba Mwale
Director - Radiocommunications
(Spectrum)
Eng. Kezias Kazuba Mwale, Director - Radiocommunications (Spectrum)
He is the Director for Spectrum at the African Telecommunications Union (ATU) since 2012. He is renowned for his significant contributions to the remarkable transformation of the institution in all its crucial aspects: membership, technical, financial, administration, legal, IT systems, as well as, partnerships. Key indicators of the said transformation include 13 countries joining as Member States, more than 30 major companies joining as Associate Members, tripling of the annual budget, and even more importantly the delivery of measurable high-value to Membership.
Some of his departmental achievements include: (1) Securing 2477MHz which is the highest amount of spectrum for broadband connectivity among all 6 regions of the world; (2) Recovering high-value satellite orbital resources for Africa benefiting 31 African countries; (3) Protecting Common-Heritage resources worth billions of USD via contention of the ITSO, (4) Adding a Significant number of 18, 326 anew FM broadcasting channels thereby powering FM Radio into the future, and (5) Making our region an equal player in global diplomacy on key digital resource of spectrum.
He has a formidable CV: (1) notably three highly relevant degrees to the digital sector, namely; Bachelor in Telecomms, Master in Broadband and Mobile Comms, and an MBA; (2) many firsts at both ZICTA and ATU giving credence to his innovation prowess and deep understanding of issues; (3) secretary of the last three conferences of ATU supreme organ as evidence of his para legal skill; (4) conception and management of high-value programmes; (5) demonstrated constitutional and legal reform capability; (5) and many other key skills including consensus building aka diplomacy.
Mme. Meriem Slimani
Director - Development
.
Mme. Meriem Slimani, Director - Development
Mme. Meriem Slimani is the Director for Development at the African Telecommunications Union (ATU). She joined the Union in 2015 as Director for Standardization and Development, and since the separation of the two portfolios in 2024 has focused on leading ATU’s development mandate. She brings more than fifteen years of experience in the development and management of IP broadband networks and internet services.
Before joining ATU, she worked with Algérie Télécom and later at the Algerian Ministry of Post and ICT, where, as Director of the Information Society, she led major e-government projects, including the modernization and digitization of retail payment instruments, the establishment of the digital commerce register and the development of institutional portals. Mme. Slimani holds engineering and postgraduate degrees from the Ecole Nationale Polytechnique in Algiers, where she also taught econometrics earlier in her career.
Mr. Isaac Boateng
Director - Standardization
.
Mr. Isaac Boateng, Director – Standardization
Mr. Isaac Boateng is the Director and Head of Standardization at the African Telecommunications Union (ATU), with over twenty-three (23) years of professional working experience in the digital technology and ICT space. He oversees the development and implementation of sector-specific initiatives, projects and programmes, and provides technical support to ATU Members in their preparations for global and regional conferences, including standardization-related engagements within the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the African Union (AU) and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs).
Prior to joining ATU, Mr. Boateng served as Deputy Director in charge of Technical Regulations at the National Communications Authority of Ghana. He has been an ITU standardization expert since 2008, serving as Vice-Chair of the Telecommunication Standardization Advisory Group (TSAG), Vice-Chair of ITU-T Study Group 11 (signalling requirements and protocols), and Chair of the ITU-T SG11 Regional Group for Africa. He has edited several ITU Recommendations and Technical Papers.
Mr Boateng holds an M.Sc. degree in Electronics and Computer Engineering (Brunel University, UK), with specialisation in Wireless Communication Systems, B.Sc. degree in Physics (Kwame Nkrumah University of Science & Technology, KNUST, GHANA) and former Adjunct Lecturer at the School of Technology, Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA).
He has chaired and also been a member of several national, regional and international committees in standardization development. He chaired the ECOWAS Roaming Committee on Antifraud, a Board Member of the Radiation Protection Institute of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, a member of the Bank of Ghana Payment and Automation Systems Committee, a member of Ghana National ISO/IEC Technical Committee, just to mention a few. He is a member of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE), a member of Ghana Institute of Engineers (GhIE), a member of IEC/ISO/ITU/ILAC Accreditation Programme Task Force and an observer of 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP).
Mr. Djibrilla Ballo
Director - Finance and Administration
.
Mr. Djibrilla Ballo, Director - Finance and Administration
He is the Director for Finance and Administration at the African Telecommunications Union (ATU) since August 2012. He oversees the Financial Management of the Union including strategic planning, Annual budgeting, Financial Management, Audit of the Accounts and coordination of the ATU Administrative Council and its related committees’ Activities/meetings.
Mr. Ballo significantly contributed to the financial stability, transparency and Accountability in Management of the Resources of the Union as well as establishment and implementation of the strong Internal Control system of the Union.
Prior to joining ATU, Mr. Ballo worked at the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications of Cameroon: Central African Backbone Program-Component of the Republic of Cameroon, as Deputy Head of Finance and Administration.
Mr. Ballo holds a MSc. Degree in Finance; MSc. Degree in Economics; specialized in Monetary policies and Banking, Bachelor Degree in Economics, Bachelor Degree in Applied Accounting and a Certified Chartered Accountant.
He represents ATU in regional and international processes, including engagements with the International Telecommunication Union and the African Union, and has contributed to strengthening the Union’s financial governance and its work on digital financial inclusion.
