Raphaël Pouyé
Co-founder
Raphaël Pouyé is a political analyst, a democracy/governance consultant, and a public innovation expert with over 20 years of experience in more than 20 countries.
He has advised national and local governments in Africa and Europe, as well as international organisations and think tanks on topics at the intersection of digital technologies and democratic governance.
Throughout this past decade, he has directly contributed to policy development and implementation in the fields of open government and citizen participation in a variety of local contexts (chiefly Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as MENA and Europe) and with multiple organisations (European Commission, French Development Agency, World Bank, etc.). Most recently, he has led the team charged with drafting the French Development Agency’s five-year democracy support strategy (2023-2024).
As Director for France at “Democratic Society” ( 2020-2023), Raphael Pouyé designed and managed innovative governance mechanisms for participatory climate action in cities (Orléans and Lyons). He trained local government officials and mayors and co-authored a toolkit for participatory governance of SDG localisation in the 19 European cities of an URBACT network led by Tallinn, Estonia.
In Africa, he has supported the governments of Sénégal (2019), Côte d’Ivoire (2020-2023) and Congo (2023) on their Open Government strategies. Raphael Pouyé led the Arusha-based formulation team that designed the East Africa Community (EAC) Electoral Support Programme in 2014-2015, a five-year, three million-euro action funded by the European Union.
He is fluent in five languages.
Pierre-Louis Rolle
Co-founder
Pierre-Louis Rolle is a digital governance and tech policy expert with over a decade of experience as a civil servant, transitioning from local government to national administration. His career has focused on ensuring equitable access to technology and leveraging data for public good.
Pierre-Louis co-founded Code for France, a non-profit organization dedicated to using technology for transparency and civic engagement.
In the national government, he held key positions at the National Digital Agency, eventually becoming the Director for Strategy and Innovation at the National Agency for Territorial Cohesion. In this role, Pierre-Louis oversaw critical digital programs and led France’s digital literacy strategy, which successfully trained over 4 million people in essential digital skills. He also served as Chief Data, Algorithms and Source Codes Officer for the Ministry of Territorial Cohesion.
His expertise in digital transformation and data-driven policy implementation led to his appointment as Senior Advisor to the Minister for Digital Affairs, where he managed key policy areas including digital public infrastructures.
Throughout his career, Pierre-Louis has championed open innovation, digital inclusion, and the creation of sustainable digital public goods. Now based in Kigali, Rwanda, he brings his extensive experience to new international challenges.
Sofia Solaini
Policy Analyst
Sofia Solaini is a policy analyst specializing in digital governance and regulatory affairs.
She holds a Master in Public Policy from Sciences Po Paris and graduated with highest honors in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics from LUISS University.
She also specialized in International Law at the Universidad de Salamanca.
Previously, she worked as Public Affairs analyst at Cattaneo Zanetto & Partners, Italy’s leading public affairs firm in Rome, where she monitored legislative and regulatory developments at national and European levels, managing portfolios of major clients in the tech sector.
Her expertise spans policy analysis, digital governance, and regulatory frameworks.