NEW DELHI: Top Indian industrialist Mr Mukesh Ambani on Friday joined the foundation board of World Economic Forum (WEF), an independent international grouping of business leaders from across the world.

Mr Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries, India’s top private sector business entity, would join the Foundation Board of WEF, the Switzerland-based organisation said in a statement.

Others joining the Foundation Board alongside Mr Ambani include French telecom major Alcatel-Lucent CEO, Mr J Verwaayen and Mr Zhu Min, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Special Adviser and a former Deputy Governor at People’s Bank of China.

Commenting on Mr Ambani’s inclusion, WEF’s founder and executive chairman, Mr Klaus Schwab said, "Mukesh Ambani will bring an extraordinary level of business acumen and his commitment to the ideals of the Forum.

"He has played a key role, especially related to the integration of India into all our activities. Ben Verwaayen has been a committed Member of the Forum for many years. His insightfulness and energy will be invaluable to the board." The Foundation Board is composed of leaders from business, politics, academia and civil society.

WEF also announced that Mr Peter Freire would join the Forum as managing director, heading the Forum’s new Global Agenda Partnership. Lord Malloch-Brown will be leaving the Forum after a successful year as vice-chairman and senior adviser of the Forum’s Global Redesign Initiative.