Ms. Giovana Mendez was the Technical Director of Studies with the Statistical Analysis and Markets Unit of Ecuador’s Telecommunications Regulatory and Controls Agency. Ms. Mendez holds a bachelor’s degree in Electronic and Telecommunications Engineering from Escuela Politecnica del Ejercito. She also holds a master’s degree in Public Policy from Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales. She believes in the power of technology to transform people’s lives and improve access to opportunities, and is dedicated to using her work to close the digital gap between women, afro Ecuadorians, and the general population. To that end, Ms. Mendez plans to learn more about how to design policies that effectively distribute the benefits of technology, and create economic opportunities for all. She will focus her learning on public policy analysis, formulation, and implementation. Ms. Mendez also wants to learn more about private-public partnerships and how they can be leveraged to boost the reach of the state and its policies. Additionally, she would like to deepen her knowledge of social policies aimed at eliminating structural inequalities.