Cheikh Tidiane MBAYE, 50 years old, is a specialist in the Telecommunications sector. He was Director of the Post and Telecommunications office in 1984. He has been Chief Executive Officer of the Senegalese National Telecommunications Company (SONATEL) since 1988, a position which he still holds.

Considering the importance of SONATEL in the economic development of Senegal, Cheikh Tidiane MBAYE is one of the privileged contacts of the government of Senegal and a reputable expert in West African development. Under his charge, SONATEL has become one of the most competitive companies in Africa as well as the first capitalisation of the Regional Stock Market in Abidjan.

Mr MBAYE is the President of the SONATEL Foundation, the first Senegalese Enterprise Foundation. It was set up in 2001 and covers the Health Sector, Cultural Sector and the Education Sector. Its priorities concerning education are to ensure the presence and success of girls in the school system. The SONATEL Foundation acts alone, or with partners such as UNICEF and the Orange Foundation (formerly known as the France Telecom Foundation).

Mr MBAYE graduated from ENSTP - Paris (French National Telecommunication Postgraduate School) and ENSAE - Paris (French National Statistics and Economic Administration Postgraduate School).

Mr MBAYE was invited in 2006 at the Women's Forum for the Economy and Society to speak about microfinance: why women benefit and how more could.