The Ghanaian government is confronted with the challenge of offering its young and rapidly growing population prospects for economic and social development. Despite strong economic growth, economic development cannot keep pace with the increasing demand for productive, decent employment. The main challenges in the labor market are widespread underemployment and precarious working conditions, especially among youth and young adults. In addition, Ghana is characterized by significantly unequal income and tenure statuses. Women in some instances experience discrimination in access to the labour market. For example, income opportunities are often higher in male-dominated occupations and career advancement opportunities for women are sometimes limited.
Start-ups and small enterprises form the backbone of Ghana’s economy, but growth prospects in the informal and formal economy are increasingly hampered by low productivity and competitiveness, especially in the context of global trade. The reasons for this are manifold: the majority of the predominantly young workforce and job seekers, as well as business owners, miss sufficient professional and entrepreneurial skills as well as access to finance. The rapid arrival of digital technologies is opening up numerous new market opportunities for existing companies and potential start-ups, but also towards challenges of the global competitive market. A large part of Ghana’s workforce is still employed in the agricultural sector, which will be exposed to increasing risks from climate change in the future. Therefore, the task of digital transformation in Ghana is to build on existing structures and address old as well as new problems using digital technologies. To support the partner government in meeting these challenges, the Digital Transformation Center Ghana was opened in 2020. Here, as well as in all other regions of the world, Digital Transformation Centers are placed alongside our partners to promote self-determined and human-centered development in the digital realm. They support local digital ecosystems in developing digital solutions to everyday challenges and promote innovation, technical skills, education, and access to the internet.
The Digital Transformation Center Ghana works with a broad spectrum of political, private-sector and civil-society partners. This ensures that the opportunities and risks of the digital transformation are equally addressed. This approach creates conditions not only for elites but also for wider sections of the Ghanaian population to benefit from digital innovations – especially women, young people and people with disabilities. To close the gender digital divide, the Digital Transformation Center Ghana follows a gender transformative approach, meaning that both men and women are engaged in promoting gender equality and changing current gender norms. The following projects are presented in the Digital Transformation Ghana:
The bilateral project supports Ghanaian businesses, especially women-led informal micro-enterprises, to strengthen their economic situation through digital transformation. The approach aims to improve policy frameworks and foster collaboration for digital entrepreneurship, promote user-centered inclusive design and accessibility of digital services, and build digital entrepreneurship skills through coaching and mentoring.
FAIR Forward – Artificial Intelligence for All, is working towards a more open and sustainable application of AI that involves developing and emerging economies. In Ghana, FAIR Forward heavily supports in the shaping of policy frameworks by supporting the Ministry of Communication and Digitalization in the drafting of the Ghana National AI Strategy for example. Contributing to building local AI expertise is another focus area, an example is organizing AI Fellowship training programs for fresh graduates. With striving for access to AI technologies for local innovation in Ghana, FAIR Forward is championing the development of a local AI innovation to aid cashew farmers with early pest and disease detection on their farms.
As e-Commerce is becoming an increasingly important procurement and sales channel in emerging African economies, the prerequisites to participate in cross-border e-Commerce are not yet in place. There is a lack of safe and affordable electronic payment system, consumers’ and companies’ trust in e-Commerce, sigital capability of SMEs and supportive regulatory frameworks. Here the Pan-African e-Commerce Initaitive funded bz BMZ and implmented by GIZ comes into play. Together with key partners, the offer tailor-made trainings and coachings for SMEs in Ghana, Kenya and Rwanda, to integrate e-Commerce solutions into their business models.
Make-IT in Africa believes in the catalytic power of African innovation and digital technologies for green and inclusive development. In close collaboration with digital visionaries like start-ups, innovation enabler organizations and political partners Make-IT in Africa strengthens African innovation ecosystems and improves growth opportunities for African start-ups. Make-IT in Africa operates pan-African with regional offices in Ghana, Rwanda and Namibia.
To promote regional climate tech innovation networks launched the Global CATAL1.5°T initiative (pronounced ‘Catalyst’) funded by the International Green Climate Fund (GFC) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Corporation and Development (BMZ), the project focuses on catalyzing startups and young companies offering innovative and sustainable climate tech solutions.
The initiative also provides technical and financial support to local startups and young companies offering innovative products and services, business models that directly help us transition to net Zero by 2050. The Initiative invests in any venture that proposes a transformative climate solution in the fields of energy, food/agriculture and land use, transportation, building and industry and manufacturing fostering diversity, equity and inclusion.
The Gig Economy Initiative aims to foster favourable framework conditions for fair work in the Gig Economy at the level of workers, platforms and critical stakeholders from politics, business and civil society. Digital platforms contribute to the creation of employment and income by providing flexibility and lowering entry barriers. At the same time, the working conditions are often not fair. Work obtained in the gig economy is usually characterized by precariousness in employment, and lack of access to pay and working conditions associated with jobs in the formal economy.
This is where the Gig Economy initiative comes into play. The project achieves this by
1) enabling workers to know and understand their rights and skills development to acquire skills in demand.
2) providing evidence-based research and insights so that platforms can take measures for fair work.
3) supporting the aspirations through the development of agile regulatory frameworks.
The Digital Transformation Center Ghana aims to support political partners in reducing the digital divide between rural and urban areas. To this end, digital skills trainings are offered to the relevant target groups of women, girls, youth, and people with disabilities in rural regions. The center advises political partners on the formulation of national policy programs and concepts, laws, regulations, and strategies for the digital economy and digital transformation in Ghana.
In this interview series we get insights on how using digital tools improve the livelihood of a nurse, a hairdresser, a trader and a teacher.
