Charles Herington, President and CEO of AOL Latin America, Joins NII Holdings' Board of Directors

Darien, Connecticut, October 16, 2003—Jefferson Partners, a leading senior executive search firm, has successfully completed its Board of Directors search assignment for NII Holdings, Inc. with Charles M. Herington, President and CEO of AOL Latin American, joining NII Holdings' Board of Directors. NII Holdings, Inc. (formerly known as Nextel International) (NASDAQ-NIHD) is a leading provider of mobile communications for business customers in Latin America.

In announcing Jefferson Partners' successful completion of the search for a member of the Board of Directors of NII Holdings, Inc., Mr. Michael A. Wellman, Founder and Managing Partner of Jefferson Partners, said, "It is enormously gratifying to have been able to identify and recruit Charles Herington to the NII Holdings, Inc. board. NII Holdings is a newly public company doing business in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Peru. Mr. Herington has spent most of nearly 22 years in business overseeing Latin American, Caribbean and Canadian operations for AOL, Revlon, PepsiCo and Procter & Gamble. He brings unique and valuable market and operating knowledge to NII Holdings."

Commenting on the search process, Mr. Steven M. Shindler, Chairman and CEO of NII Holdings, Inc. said, "Overall, Mike did an outstanding job for us. What was most effective was the way he explained the process, his diligent follow-through, and his updates of what was happening. I view Mike’s search and consulting skill set, and his firm, as highly specialized to address the top tier positions – CEO, President, CFO or Board of Directors. I would certainly recommend him highly."

Also commenting of the search, Mr. Herington, said, "It was one of the best search processes I’ve ever been part of. The opportunity that Mike presented to be a Director on this Board was well aligned with my background and expertise. There were two superior elements with Mike Wellman in his role as recruiter: first, he moved the entire process much faster than other recruiters, and second, he had a great deal of knowledge about his client organization."

About Jefferson Partners
Jefferson Partners is a retainer executive search firm that specializes in senior level executive search, including Board Directors, CEO, CFO and other "C-level" positions. Founded by Michael A. Wellman, a 20-year veteran of senior executive search, Jefferson Partners conducts searches for Fortune 500, middle market and emerging new business in advanced technology, venture capital, private equity, communications, manufactured goods, biotechnology, consumer products and services, financial services and professional services industries. Incorporated in August 2002, the company is a privately held corporation headquartered in Darien, Connecticut. For more information, please visit www.jeffersonsearch.com or call 646-827-8275.

For more information:
Melissa Krantz
Krantz & Co
917 653 6716
krantzand@aol.com