Gov’t rolls out measures to address Ghana’s AI, digital infrastructure gaps – Sam George

Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovation, Samuel Nartey George, says the government has begun implementing measures to address gaps identified in the country’s digital infrastructure, artificial intelligence capacity and cybersecurity resilience.

Speaking at the ongoing UNESCO Global Forum on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence, during the ministers’ closed-door forum, the Minister said Ghana had used the UNESCO Readiness Assessment Methodology (RAM) not merely as an assessment exercise but as a tool to identify national gaps and guide government’s digital transformation priorities.

He said the assessment provided Ghana with a useful basis to benchmark its progress, particularly in areas including artificial intelligence skills, cybersecurity, digital infrastructure and the country’s digital contribution to the economy.

According to the Minister, Ghana continues to perform strongly in international cybersecurity assessments, but the readiness assessment also highlighted areas requiring urgent attention.

He noted that Ghana currently has no comprehensive AI-specific legislation covering all aspects of artificial intelligence governance, making the development of appropriate regulatory and technical frameworks an important priority.

The Minister, however, stressed that the government was already acting on the gaps identified through the assessment.

He said the country is implementing a US$200 million digitalisation project aimed at strengthening critical components of Ghana’s digital infrastructure.

Among the interventions, he said, are the upgrading of the National Data Centre, operationalisation of a national data exchange hub, expansion of last-mile connectivity and strengthening of cybersecurity resilience.

Sam George also disclosed that Cabinet has approved US$250 million for the establishment of a National AI and Computing Centre.

He said the facility would give researchers, start-ups, universities and other technology innovators affordable and sovereign access to high-performance computing and artificial intelligence infrastructure.

The Minister emphasised that the initiative was not merely a policy promise but a funded programme that is currently being implemented by the government.

He further called for increased international cooperation, describing the UNESCO readiness assessment as a cooperation instrument rather than simply a national exercise.

According to him, the assessment enables countries to benchmark themselves against shared objectives, learn from one another and develop common solutions rather than independently creating their own frameworks.

Samuel Nartey George said countries at similar stages of digital development could benefit significantly from working together, particularly because no single country could build the entire artificial intelligence and advanced computing ecosystem alone.

He also raised concerns about the continued dependence of developing countries on foreign cloud-computing providers.

He urged governments to carefully structure their data partnerships with foreign technology companies in order to protect national sovereignty, strategic data and national interests.

The Minister called on UNESCO and its partners to provide developing countries with more capacity, rather than only more guidance, particularly through funding, infrastructure and technical expertise.

He said Ghana would welcome continued support from UNESCO in establishing and operationalising its national computing infrastructure, as well as strengthening the regulatory and technical capacity required to govern and deploy AI responsibly.

Sam George reaffirmed Ghana’s readiness to deepen its partnership with UNESCO and other stakeholders to ensure that artificial intelligence and digital technologies are used responsibly to support national development.

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