Ghana has taken a significant step towards strengthening its technological partnership with Zambia, as a high-level delegation led by Zambia’s Minister for Technology and Science, Felix Mutati, visits Accra for a two-day engagement aimed at fostering innovation, collaboration, and investment.

The visit marks a continuation of growing bilateral relations between the two African nations, with both governments signalling a strong commitment to leveraging technology as a driver of economic growth and development.

The delegation, which includes 16 business representatives from Lusaka, is expected to participate in intensive discussions, roundtable meetings, and networking sessions designed to translate dialogue into tangible business outcomes.

Speaking at a meeting hosted by the National Communications Authority, Ghana’s Minister for Communications, Digital Technology, and Innovations, Sam George, expressed optimism that the visit would yield concrete results.

He noted that the engagements in Accra would mirror earlier interactions held in Lusaka, describing the moment as “exciting” for Ghana as it hosts what he termed a “powerful delegation” from Zambia. He emphasised that the packed 48-hour schedule would involve extensive deliberations, discussions, learning opportunities, and the building of meaningful partnerships.

Mr George emphasised the importance of mutual learning, stressing that both countries must draw from each other’s experiences to improve their respective technological ecosystems.

He also expressed confidence that while the official visit would conclude with Minister Mutati’s departure, some members of the Zambian delegation would remain in Accra to finalise business deals.

He further explained that the framework for the engagement would be highly structured and complementary, with multiple meetings taking place simultaneously across different clusters to maximise time and outcomes.

According to him, the focus would be on forging strong alliances capable of delivering long-term benefits to both nations.

For his part, Zambia’s Technology and Science Minister, Felix Mutati, highlighted the critical role of the technology sector in his country’s economy, noting that it contributes approximately 50 per cent to Zambia’s Gross Domestic Product.

He argued that deeper collaboration with Ghana would be instrumental in developing locally driven solutions to shared African challenges.

Mr Mutati called for a shift in mindset across the continent, urging African nations to move beyond being mere consumers of technology to becoming creators of innovative solutions. He emphasised the need for stronger intra-African collaboration, knowledge exchange, and practical application of technological tools to address pressing issues.

Mr Mutati pointed to the transformative potential of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, citing an example in which a start-up leveraged AI to identify what he described as the largest copper deposit discovered in a century. Such breakthroughs, he suggested, should serve as inspiration for African innovators.

Encouraging participants to aim for bold and transformative outcomes, Mr Mutati challenged stakeholders to pursue solutions that go beyond incremental improvements.

The two-day engagement is expected to focus on knowledge sharing, partnership building, and the exploration of business opportunities within the technology sector.