Pedro H. Tavares | Head of Advisory – Digital Government & Transformation
Timor Telecom

Pedro H. Tavares is Head of Advisory – Digital Government & Transformation at Timor Telecom, bringing close to three decades of experience across digital government, digital public infrastructure, telecommunications and technology transformation, with professional and academic experience spanning more than 30 countries. His work focuses on helping governments and organisations translate digital strategies into integrated public systems and practical implementation.

Prior to rejoining Timor Telecom in 2026, Pedro led the Asian Development Bank’s Digital Public Infrastructure and Digital Government practice across Asia and the Pacific. He previously led UNICEF East Asia and Pacific’s regional digital health practice and served as a Lead Digital Strategy Expert for the International Telecommunication Union, developing national digital transformation strategies across several Pacific Island countries.

Pedro has extensive experience working directly with governments on national digital transformation, including policy, governance and institutional reform. In Timor-Leste, he led the development of Timor Digital 2032, the country’s ten-year strategic plan for digital and ICT development. His work has also covered digital identity, interoperability and data exchange, data governance, cybersecurity, connectivity, digital inclusion and the digital economy, alongside digital applications across health, education, justice, social protection, agriculture, banking, public finance, trade facilitation and public administration.

Earlier in his career, Pedro led technology transformation programmes at DBS Bank and held advisory roles across Timor-Leste, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. He also previously worked with Timor Telecom as a Transformation Consultant and began his career in R&D and software engineering with Nokia Siemens Networks.

Pedro holds an Executive MBA from NUS Business School and an MSc in Information Systems, complemented by a postgraduate certificate in Advanced Project Management from Stanford University. He has completed executive education in digital government at Harvard Kennedy School, fintech at Harvard University, cybersecurity and business process design at MIT Sloan, and data law, policy and regulation at the London School of Economics.