Current WSCF Staff and Officers

This page lists profiles of the current global officers and executive staff of the World Student Christian Federation. Profiles listed here include:

WSCF Officers
:: Chairperson
:: Vice-Chairpersons
:: Treasurer

WSCF Global Staff
::General Secretary
::Inter-Regional Women's Co-ordinator

WSCF Regional Staff
::WSCF Africa Regional Secretary
::WSCF Asia-Pacific Regional Secretary
::WSCF Europe Regional Secretary
::WSCF Latin America and Caribbean Regional Secretary
::WSCF Middle East Regional Secretary
::North America Regional Secretary.

For leadership profiles of Regional officers, please go to WSCF Regions.

To view profiles for the WSCF Executive Committee please go to WSCF ExCo.

Profiles include the name, country of origin, age, educational background and ecumenical experience of each WSCF officer and executive staff member.


WSCF Officers

:: WSCF Chairperson

Mr. Horacio Mesones (Uruguay)
Horacio Mesones is a member of the Methodist Church of Uruguay. He served as Latin America and Caribbean Regional Secretary from 2000-2005 and is a former LAC regional Chairperson. Horacio is currently Director of Advisory Services for CREAS, a regional ecumenical organisation based in Buenos Aires that provides capacity building for the ecumenical movement in eight Latin American countries.



:: WSCF Honorary Treasurer

Mr. Youhanna Kamal Shawky (Egypt)
Youhanna Kamal Shawky (b. 1973) belongs to the Coptic Orthodox Church. He speaks Arabic and English and holds a B.Sc. in Commerce – Accounting . His accounting background includes auditing, financial management, investment planning and financial feasibility studies for organisations. Youhanna is currently a public accountant with Kamal Shawky & Co. where he has been since 1994.
Youhanna is a member of the Board of Ministry for the Youth Bishopric of the Coptic Church and represents the Coptic Church on the board of Egypt’s Ecumenical Youth Committee. He co-ordinates a University Student Christian Association (USCA) group in the faculty of business and economics in Cairo and is a member of the USCA general secretariat as co-ordinator of the central committee for youth.



:: WSCF Vice-Chairperson

Ms. Janejinda Pawadee (Thailand)
Ms. Janejinda Pawadee (43) is a member of the Church of Christ of Thailand. Ms. Pawadee was an SCM leader as a student and from 1986-9 she was an Asia-Pacific Regional Women’s Committee member and member of the WSCF A-P Regional Committee. She later served on the Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) Urban Rural Mission Board. Janejinda is presently Coordinator of CCA’s Mekong Ecumenical Partnership Programme. In her current role, she works in capacity building, human rights advocacy, HIV and AIDS education and sustainable development.


:: WSCF Vice-Chairperson

Ms. Shantha Ready (USA)
Ms. Shantha Ready (b. 1983) Shantha Ready (USA) holds BA degrees in English and psychology from the University of Notre Dame ('05) and is currently a dual Master degree candidate in pastoral studies (social justice concentration) at Eden Theological Seminary and social work (combined mental health and social & economic development concentration) at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.
Ms. Ready is a member of the Roman Catholic Church and has served as an intern with the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Ms. Ready brings to her position experience working with young adults in the ecumenical movement and in grassroots community organizing with the Gamaliel Foundation. She also pursued studies in Latin American Theologies in Santiago, Chile and San Jose, Costa Rica.



WSCF Regional Staff

:: WSCF Africa Regional Secretary

Ms. Georgine Kengne Djeutane (Cameroon)
Georgine Kengne Djeutane first joined SCM in 1990. She is a member of the Evangelical Church of Cameroon. Prior to her appointment as WSCF Africa Regional Secretary in 2004, Georgine Kengne Djeutane was the Programme Director of the Ecumenical Service for Peace in Cameroon. She has served as General Secretary of SCM Cameroon, a member of the Africa Executive Committee (Proxy) and Central Africa Sub-Regional Co-ordinator of the Female Students’ Commission.
Since 1997, Georgine has been involved in Economic Justice for Peace activities (specifically in the areas of debt, globalisation, trade and peace issues). She currently serves on the advisory boards of the Africa Forum and the Network on Debt and Development. She also works with the World Council of Churches Justice, Peace and Creation Team. Georgine has an MPhil in Economics and a Masters’ degree in Ecumenical Theology.


:: WSCF Asia-Pacific Regional Secretary

Ms. Necta Montes Rocas (Philippines)
Necta Montes (b. 1968) is a member of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP). She first joined SCM Philippines in 1982 and later held positions as General Secretary of SCM Philippines and General Secretary of the Philippine Christian Youth Federation. Necta majored in psychology in her Bachelor of Science, she is currently continuing study for a Master’s degree in Theology at the Asian Theological Seminary. Prior to taking up the position of Asia-Pacific Regional Secretary, Necta was Resource and Development Officer for Isis International, a Manila-based NGO dedicated to women's information and communication needs. Before she moved to Isis International, Necta held the position of WSCF Asia-Pacific Regional Women's Co-ordinator. Necta has also served as a member of the WSCF Executive Committee.


:: WSCF Europe Regional Secretary

Ms. Jooa Vuorinen (Finland)
Jooa Vuorinen (b. 1981) Jooa first joined WSCF through a WSCF conference in Vilnius, Lithuania, in 2005. Previously she had been involved in the activities of Syndesmos, the World Fellowship of Orthodox Youth. She has held the position of the Chairperson of Orthodox Student Association in Finland in 2005-2006 and has also been actively involved in the Finnish Lutheran SCM. In 2005-2007 she was a member of the European Regional Committee of WSCF, in the position of Links Coordinator. Jooa holds a Masters in Theology from the University of Joensuu, Finland and is currently continuing her studies for a PhD in Theology.







:: WSCF Latin America and Caribbean Regional Secretary

Mr. Gustavo Quintero Casadiego (Colombia)
Gustavo Quintero Casadiego (b. 1983). A specialist in marketing and communication, Gustavo has coordinated several youth encounters, plus national seminars for peace and for the pastoral leadership of youth and students.

In 2004 he was a delegate to the XI FUMEC-LAC Regional Assembly in Colonia Valdense, Uruguay. Since 2006 he has been the Director of the Youth Department of the Alliance of Presbyterian and Reformed Churches of Latin America. In 2007 Gustavo became Publicist and Manager of Communications and Publications at the Reformed University in Barranquilla, Colombia, and since 2008 he has been the Communications Advisor for the Student Christian Movement of Colombia.
:: WSCF North America Regional Secretary

Mr. Luciano Kovacs (USA/Italy)
Luciano Kovacs comes to WSCF from Jan Hus Presbyterian Church in New York where he has been working as Social Justice Director. Previously he worked as Director of Homeless Outreach and Advocacy, also at Jan Hus Church. Originally from Italy, Luciano has a long association with WSCF. As a student he was active in the Italian movement, Federazione Giovanile Evangelica Italiana (FGEI) and he was a member of the WSCF European Regional Committee from 1995 to 1997. In 1999 he worked for WSCF in the Federation's Europe office. Mr. Kovacs participated in WSCF's global leadership training programme in India in 1994 and attended the 31st General Assembly in Côte d'Ivoire, 1995. Luciano took up the role of North America Regional Secretary in January 2008.


:: WSCF Middle East Regional Secretary

Ms. Elsy Wakil (Lebanon)
Elsy Wakil (b.1973) is an experienced ecumenical youth educator and former WSCF staff person from the Middle East Region. A member of the Greek Orthodox Church, Ms. Wakil first joined WSCF through the Orthodox Youth Movement of Lebanon in 1995. A speaker of Arabic, French and English, she comes to the Regional Secretary position from her previous role as Assistant General Secretary for the Middle East Ecumenical Popular Education Programme (2005-2008), where she worked training trainers in Human Rights, Popular Education and Development. Her background includes formal teaching experience with school and university students and as the Manager for Finance and Administration with Habitat for Humanity, Lebanon. A qualified computer scientist and programmer, she is a former administrator of the WSCF Middle East Regional Office (1995-2002) and has been involved in WSCF Middle East programmes on Muslim-Christian Dialogue, Iraqi Christian Youth Responses to the Iraq Siege and Leadership Training seminars throughout the Middle East Region. She has represented WSCF at UNESCO in Paris and attended the 1999 WSCF General Assembly in Beirut.