Melle Tiel Groenestege is a Senior Director for the Connected Society team. Prior to this role, he was the the Policy & Advocacy Director within the Connected Society and Connected Women programmes at the GSMA, working on policies and advocacy campaigns to address the barriers to mobile internet adoption, bridging the digital gender divide and expanding mobile broadband coverage in rural areas.

Before joining the GSMA, Melle was responsible for Government Relations at the headquarters of VEON, where he supported senior executives on engagements with high level officials, managed relations with key international partners including the WEF, ITU and the GSMA, and worked with all markets to support local policy strategies. As a Digital Policy Advisor, Melle worked on a range of digital policy topics, including national digital strategies, financial inclusion and the promotion of a stable investment climate. Prior to VEON, Melle worked at ITU on corporate strategy, focusing on advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals through the use of digital technologies.

Melle holds a Master’s degree in Business Information Management from the Rotterdam School of Management, two Bachelor degrees, in International Business Administration from the VU Amsterdam and Political Science from the University of Amsterdam, and studied at the National University of Singapore.