Joulan Abdul Khalek joined the World Bank in 2012 as an economist specializing in Information and Communication Technologies.
He is currently working as an independent senior specialist, consulting with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) on Telecom Media and Technology. Over the past ten years, Joulan has helped startups, private sector organizations, and government agencies implement new technology initiatives. He has advocated for digital inclusion and skills in a total of 21 countries around the world, including ten in the Middle East and North Africa.
Joulan is also an Artificial Intelligence (AI) entrepreneur and holds a patent for his work on developing low-cost and decentralized machine-learning systems in urban environments. Prior to the World Bank, he worked at the Carnegie Middle East Center and Daimler AG.
Joulan holds a post-graduate degree in International Political Economy from the London School of Economics and degrees in Economics and Engineering Management from the American University of Beirut. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Computational Media and Arts at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.