JPN joined Smart Africa in January 2018 as Special Advisor to the Executive Director. In his role, he will be in charge of supporting the Executive Director on overall organizational strategy, operations, partnership, resource mobilization, corporate communication and branding. Phil is a strong believer in the combined power of leadership, technology, innovation and inclusive partnerships to drive Africa’s digital transformation.
Prior to joining Smart Africa, Phil served successively as Cabinet Minister of Youth and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the Government of Rwanda for 6 years. In that capacity, he spearheaded several flagship initiatives including TransformAfrica Summits and YouthConnekt Africa Initiative. He led the design and implementation of the Smart Rwanda Master Plan with policies on Broadband for all, Digital Literacy, Cybersecurity, Digital Health, Education, Governance, Trade, Finance and Innovation in the 4th Industrial Revolution. During his tenure, Rwanda embarked on strategic Public Private Partnerships that resulted into several World’s and Africa’s firsts, such as the largest national 4G LTE network rollout that covers 95% of the country and the world’s first commercial use of drones for delivering live saving medical supplies. Phil’s 15 years’ experience includes successful stints in the private sector and international development as well as academia where he started his career.
He holds an MBA from Singapore’s SP Jain School of Global Business and a Master’s of Science in Software Engineering from the University of Rwanda.
In his spare time, Phil enjoys reading, writing and playing golf. He speaks English and French fluently.
