Rania El Rafie is Vice President of Public Relations & Strategic Communications at APO Group and a recognised leader in pan-African strategic communications, with over 22 years of experience across Africa and the Middle East. Based in Cairo, Egypt, she is known for shaping high-impact communications strategies, managing complex reputational environments, and delivering sustained visibility for global brands and institutions across diverse African markets. During her tenure at APO Group, Rania has played a pivotal role in positioning the firm as Africa’s leading public relations and strategic communications consultancy. She has led and contributed to multiple award-winning campaigns, including those recognised by the SABRE Awards (notably for Canon’s World Unseen campaign, Canon R Tour, Africa Business Heroes flagship campaign, and Mercy Ships). APO Group’s work under her leadership has also been recognised at the Davos Communications Awards as Best PR Agency in Africa, Leading Communications Consultancy Africa 2025, and Best Public Relations Campaign, as well as by Brands Review Magazine and World Business Outlook for excellence in communications and media consultancy. Rania’s leadership and impact have been widely acknowledged. She was named Most Innovative Woman of the Year 2025 at the Stevie® Awards, recognised among the Top 50 Outstanding Women in Communications in Africa, listed in the Ascent Top 100 Career Women in Africa 2025, and selected as a jury member for the 50 Most Influential African Women in Sports. She has also been recognised by Africa PR Week as one of the Top 10 Women in PR and honoured with the Queen Moremi Award for women shaping the future of public relations. In January 2024, Rania became the first professional to be promoted internally to Vice President of Public Relations & Strategic Communications at APO Group, and the youngest to hold the role. Since joining APO Group in 2020, she has built and led a high-performing, pan-African team, embedding governance, execution discipline, and strategic advisory at the core of client delivery. Rania has led communications for some of the world’s most prominent organisations, including Emirates, Canon, Nestlé, Mercy Ships, the UN Global Africa Business Initiative, NBA, International Olympic Committee (IOC), FIFA, Liquid Intelligent Technologies, Marriott, Afreximbank, GITEX, MSD, and Western Union. Her work reflects a deep understanding of the intersection between media, reputation, culture, and business strategy across diverse African markets. Prior to joining APO Group, Rania built her career within leading global communications networks, including TBWA and JWT in Dubai, where she held senior regional roles managing multinational brands across Egypt and the GCC. Her experience spans strategic communications, reputation management, executive visibility, and large-scale regional campaigns for sectors including media, finance, technology, real estate, and consumer brands. This global agency foundation continues to inform her disciplined, commercially grounded approach to strategic communications in African markets. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the American University in Dubai, with a double concentration in Advertising and Marketing.