Sunil Mittal elected chief of International Chamber of Commerce

Mittal is the third Indian to head ICC, being the world's oldest and most respected global business organisation

Sunil Bharti Mittal, founder chairman of Bharti Enterprises, has been elected as the head of International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), based in Paris, France.

Mittal is the third Indian business leader to head ICC in its near-hundred year history of being the world's oldest and most respected global business organisation.

He takes over from Terry McGraw, Chairman Emeritus of S&P Global, who will now become ICC's honorary chairman.

The ICC World Council elected the new leaders after a voting held today in Sao Paolo, Brazil, Bharti Enterprises said in a statement.

"I am honoured at being given the opportunity to lead this prestigious global institution and look forward to working with our members. There is an urgent need to restore trade and investment as a driver of growth and jobs, particularly in the developing world and this will be a focus of my tenure," Mittal said.

Mittal serves on many international bodies and think-tanks. He is currently the Chair of the World Economic Forums (WEF) Telecommunications Steering Committee. He is also a member of the India-US, India-UK and India-Japan CEO Forums.