The Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Development (AI4SD) has launched its innovation and startup training program aimed at helping young people in Ghana develop skills in key sectors such as agriculture, health, education, mining, energy, and for Persons with Disabilities (PWD).

The initiative funded by the French Embassy in Ghana and the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), and supported by the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), International Development Research Center (IDRC) and the Artificial Intelligence for Development (AI4D), is designed to support youth in transforming ideas into products and creating job opportunities.

A total of 17 teams, comprising 51 participants, have been selected to take part in the AI4SD innovation and startup training program.

Each team, made up of three members, is focused on specific thematic areas including health, energy, education, solutions for Persons with Disabilities, and agriculture.

The program will run over six months, with the first phase focusing on pre-incubation training.

The first phase of the AI4SD training will showcase the ability of Ghana’s youth to turn ideas into products.

The next phase will focus on raising funds to help participants grow their businesses and create jobs.

The AI4SD Innovations and Entrepreneurship team, led by Prof. Kwadwo Mensah-Darkwa, together with Dr. Kwame Opuni-Boachie Obour Agyekum, and Mr. Makafui Bedzra, attended the launch to welcome and congratulate the youth who will benefit from the innovation and startup initiative.

Mr. Makafui Bedzra, who doubles as the Innovation Support Officer for AI4SD and the Innovation Manager at the KNUST College of Engineering noted, “Our hope is that through this initiative, we can support young people in developing their businesses and contribute to the economy”.

Participants will receive lessons on Artificial Intelligence, programming, entrepreneurship, business model development, intellectual property, and startup legalities.

The training will also cover market research, data analysis, and design thinking.

According to Mr. Makafui Bedzra, the initiative will help reduce youth unemployment in Ghana and empower them to start their own businesses.

“We want to help young people take their ideas and turn them into actual businesses.

This training will give them the knowledge they need to start companies that can tackle important issues like social equity and poverty,” he noted.

Throughout the program, participants will also have access to resources such as AI labs, the innovation center, and IoT labs.

Mr. Makafui Bedzra said, “The labs will give them the tools to work on their prototypes and improve their projects.

We’re providing a space for innovators to develop their products and gain hands-on experience.”

The program will focus on specific themes each week, with the aim of helping participants develop their projects and business skills.

The final months of the program will feature an exhibition where participants will showcase their products to investors.

The exhibition will take place in October, with the last week dedicated to a grand finale.

“We want to make sure that by October, the participants will have products that are ready to be shown to potential investors. This will be their chance to take their ideas to the next level,” the AI4SD Innovation Support Officer and the KNUST College of Engineering Innovation Manager added.