Jaswinder "Jas" Bedi (Kenya)
President
Mr. Jaswinder (Jas) Bedi graduated as a textile technologist in the UK in 1984 and has over 34 years of experience in the manufacturing sector in Kenya. Mr. Bedi is an industrialist and an entrepreneur who has numerous responsibilities in business and various business member organizations. Over the years, he has attended several executive business courses organized by Harvard Business School, IMD, and IIM to mention a few to his credentials. He is a member of YPOWPO global network of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO). Jas was also nominated a finalist in the 2016 Africa CEO forum awards and subsequently awarded the 2016 Sikh CEO of the year.
Mr. Bedi was appointed a board member at The Export Promotion Council (EPC) in 2003 and in 2006 transferred to serve the board of The Export Processing Zones Authority (EPZA) for a period of 6 years until October 2012.
In December 2012, HE President Mwai Kibaki honored Jas with a medal, Moran of the Burning Spear (MBS). Further in 2016 HE President Kenyatta appointed Jas as the Chairman of the Export Promotion Council to help boost Kenya’s exports and later decorated him with a medal, Elder of the Burning Spear (EBS) in Dec 2017.
Mr. Bedi is currently
- President of International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF)
- Chairman Export Promotion Council (EPC)
- Chairman of the African Cotton & Textile Industries Federation (ACTIF)
- Director of Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA)
- Managing Director of Bedi Investments Limited
- Executive Director of Fine Spinners Uganda Limited
He has previously also served as
- Chairman of the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM)
- Chairman of Kenya Apparel Manufacturers Exporters Association (KAMEA)
- Director and Vice Chairman of East African Business Council (EABC)
- Director of the Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE)
- Managing Director of Orbit Chemical Industries Limited
Peter Gnägi (Switzerland)
Education
Peter Gnägi graduated as a mechanical engineer of the ETH/Switzerland. He has over 25 years experience in the textile machine manufacturing sector.
Professional Activities
1990 - 2010: Rieter Group, Winterthur, Switzerland:
Head, Business Group Spun Yarn Systems /
Member of Group Executive Committee
2002 - 2010: Head, Division Textile System
1998 - 2002: Head, Business Group Spun Yarn Systems
1992 - 1998: Head, Business Unit Combing Machinery
1990 - 1992: Head, Robotics
1982 - 1990: Mettler Instrumente AG, Stäfa, Switzerland:
1986 - 1990: Head of Department, Operating Equipment
1982 - 1986: Project Manager, Automation
1979 - 1982: Alusuisse AG, Zürich, Switzerland:
1981 - 1982: Project Engineer, Corporate Headquarters
1981: Project Engineer, Heyward Robinson, US Group Company
1979- 1981: Research Engineer, Rolling Mills Division
Professional Affiliations
- Member of the CEMATEX General Assembly
- Member of the Board of ITMF
Muharrem H. Kayhan (Türkiye)
Born in 1955 in Izmir, Muharrem Kayhan was educated at St. Joseph French School and Robert College of Istanbul. He got his Engineering Degree in Textiles in 1976 from the University of Manchester in England. He received his MBA from Cornell University in 1978. Muharrem Kayhan is presently Vice-Chairman of the Board of Söktaş. The company produces fine fabrics for shirtings at its two factories in Türkiye and India. He has represented the interests of the Turkish textile industry in various European Union platforms while serving on the Boards of the Chamber of Industry, the Exporters' Union, and the Textile Employers' Association.
He has served as Chairman of TÜSIAD (Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association) between 1997-1999. Muharrem Kayhan serves on the Board of Trustees of Robert College and is a Member of the Board of the Izmir Culture, Art and Education Foundation. His interests are archaeology and numismatics.
He is married and has two children.
Rafael Cervone (Brazil)
Textile Engineer, graduated from the Faculdade de Engenharia Industrial - FEI.
Member of the Board of ITMF – International Textile Manufacturers Federation;
Member of CONEX – Foreign Trade Council (Ministry of Economy), which advises the Executive Management Committee of the Council of Ministers of CAMEX;
Honorary President of the Board of Directors of the Brazilian Textile and Apparel Industry Association – ABIT and the Spinning and Weaving Industries Union of the State of São Paulo – Sinditêxtil-SP;
Vice President of the Roberto Simonsen Institute (IRS);
Member of the Steering Committee of the SP Export Program – São Paulo Export Support Program, part of the National Export Culture Plan of the State of São Paulo (Investe SP);
Executive Director of the Internationalization Program of the Brazilian Textile and Fashion Industry, a partnership between Abit and Apex-Brasil (Brazilian Agency for the Promotion of Exports and Investments);
President of the Technical Advisory Board of Senai Cetiqt (Rio de Janeiro – RJ);
1st Vice President of the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo – FIESP for the 2022-2025 term; Re-elected for the 2026-2029 term;
President of the Center for the Industries of the State of São Paulo – CIESP for the 2022-2025 term. Re-elected for the 2026-2029 term;
Yingxin Xu (China)
Mr. Xu Yingxin graduated from China Textile University, and currently serves as the Vice President of China National Textile and Apparel Council, Chairman of the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT, and Acting Head of China Textile Go Global Union.
Mr. Xu Yingxin has extensive experience in promoting foreign trade, bilateral investment and economic & technological cooperation in China’s textile and apparel industry. Over the past 30 years, he has organized a series of world-renowned brand exhibitions which covers the entire textile industry chain, and worked on the research in the international trade policy and“going global” strategy of Chinese textile industry.