Dorothy Gordon

Dorothy Gordon is a distinguished Ghanaian technology activist and development specialist who served as Chair of UNESCO's Information For All Programme (IFAP) from 2018 to 2023, where she championed digital inclusion and information access globally. Her three-decade career spans crucial roles in technology and development, including founding Director-General of the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT, where she established it as a leading technology hub in Africa. A development economist by training with degrees from the University of Ghana and Sussex University's Institute of Development Studies, she has worked across multiple sectors including senior positions at UNDP in India, Geneva, New York, and Zambia. Her expertise encompasses gender in technology, EdTech, and frontier technologies including AI ethics and security. She currently serves on numerous prestigious boards including the UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education, 5Rights Foundation, Linux Professional Institute, and Creative Commons' advisory council. Born in Nsawam, Ghana, and fluent in both English and French, she has worked in over 100 countries, advocating for ROAM principles, open-source technologies, and greater participation of women in STEM. Her contributions to technology and development earned her recognition as one of Africa's Most Powerful Women in Technology in 2013, while her work continues to shape policy and practice in technology innovation with a focus on inclusion and equity.