Akhil Thomas Strategy & Operations Manager

Akhil joined the GFCE Secretariat in November 2023, serving first in the Projects and Programmes Pillar and now, as a Strategy & Operations Manager.

Akhil serves as the Strategy & Operations Manager, where he spearheads key strategic initiatives to align the GFCE’s mission with evolving global cybersecurity priorities. Akhil advises the organization’s leadership on strategic direction, ensuring the GFCE remains at the forefront of international cyber diplomacy. Additionally, his responsibilities include driving change management to professionalize the GFCE Secretariat through process improvement, policy development, and fostering cross-pillar collaboration.

With a background in international cooperation and project management, Akhil has successfully coordinated multi-thematic projects across diverse political and cultural contexts. Prior to joining the GFCE, he was part of the global digital rights organization Access Now, where he worked on critical tech policy issues and played an instrumental role in implementing programmatic operations for the Asia-Pacific policy team. Prior to this, he worked at the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) based in Singapore, where he supported international cooperation projects to improve relations between ASEM member states in Asia and Europe. 

Akhil holds a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Economics from Loyola College, Chennai, and a Master of Science (M.Sc.) in Global Corporations and Policy from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, where his dissertation examined the rise of digital repression in Sub-Saharan Africa.