GSMA re-elects Gopal Vittal as chair for 2027-28 term

New Delhi: The GSMA Board of Directors has re-elected Bharti Airtel Executive Vice Chairman Gopal Vittal as the association's chair for the 2027-2028 term till December 2028.

Vittal has served on the GSMA Board for 10 years, including as chair since 2025. The GSMA represents mobile operators and companies in the mobile ecosystem worldwide. As Chair, he oversees the strategic direction of the organisation.

The Board has also elected Vodafone Group CEO Margherita Della Valle as co-Deputy Chair, alongside MTN Group President and CEO Ralph Mupita, who has been re-elected.

Reacting to his re-election, Vittal said he was honoured to be re-elected for a second time and that the industry is entering a new era where advanced networks, AI and open digital platforms can create significant economic and societal value.

He said the top priority is security — securing nations given rising threats, securing customers from the menace of scams and securing the industry by making it sustainable so it can continue to invest in technology and build infrastructure.

Vittal oversees Bharti Airtel and its subsidiaries and drives group strategy across digital and technology, network strategy, procurement and talent. He is also Non-Executive Chair of Airtel Africa and Airtel Payments Bank and a Non-Executive Director on the BT Group Board.

The re-election comes weeks after the GSMA Board met here in October to set priorities for the next era of connectivity. At the time, Vittal had said India's rapid 5G adoption and deployment of digital public infrastructure show how scale, talent and ambition can drive inclusive growth.

During the meeting, the Board had noted that India is a leader in mobile connectivity with 1.2 billion active connections, 450 million of which are 5G.

Moreover, the Board had also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the visit.

According to the GSMA, mobile technologies and services generated $6 trillion in economic value in 2025, equivalent to 6.4 per cent of global GDP, and the contribution is projected to reach $11.3 trillion by 2030.

The GSMA had said that by 2030, 57 per cent of all mobile connections are expected to run on 5G, with operators projected to invest $1.2 trillion in capex between 2025 and 2030.

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