The Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Samuel Nartey George, has stated that Ghana is undergoing a deliberate digital reset under the leadership of President John Dramani Mahama, emphasising that the transformation goes beyond incremental reforms.

According to him, the country’s digital agenda is focused on deep structural change rather than superficial adjustments.

“We are moving from digital consumption to digital production, from participation to leadership, and from dependency to sovereignty,” he said.

Samuel Nartey George made the remarks at the FEMITECH Conference 2026 organised by the Ghana–India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT (GI-KACE) under the theme “Give to Gain.”

He explained that the mandate of the Ministry is clear: digital transformation must translate into real economic power. The goal, he noted, is not only improved connectivity or digital platforms but tangible outcomes such as job creation, enterprise growth, expanded exports and youth empowerment.

Speaking on the theme of the conference, the Minister highlighted the importance of empowering women in technology.

“When we say ‘Give to Gain’, we are saying something profound about women in technology. When women are given access to capital, they build resilient enterprises. When women are given digital tools, they unlock productivity across families and communities. When women are given platforms to innovate, entire economies gain stability and growth,” he stated.

He emphasised that the government’s focus is not merely on symbolic inclusion but on strengthening competitiveness within the technology ecosystem.

Through GI-KACE, he explained that efforts are underway to strengthen SME digitisation frameworks, develop incubation and acceleration pathways, integrate artificial intelligence into enterprise processes, and improve export readiness under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), while connecting innovation directly to markets.

Samuel Nartey George noted that national development requires strong collaboration across sectors.

“Government provides infrastructure and policy direction, entrepreneurs contribute creativity and discipline, development partners bring capital and global connections, and industry provides scale and supply chains. Together, these elements drive Ghana’s transformation,” he said.

He also cautioned that the global economy is evolving rapidly, with artificial intelligence redefining productivity, automation reshaping manufacturing, data governance determining sovereignty, and cybersecurity defining trust.

“Under the administration of President Mahama, we are building digital public infrastructure that supports innovation. We are strengthening data governance frameworks that protect national interests and enhancing AI capacity so Ghanaian talent can both use and build intelligent systems,” he explained.

He stressed that women must remain central to this transformation.

“Here at FEMITECH, we are ensuring that women are not at the margins of this transformation. They are at the centre of it,” he added.

The Minister further explained that empowering women in technology strengthens Ghana’s economic resilience, expands export opportunities and enhances national competitiveness.

Addressing the theme “Give to Gain,” he said it reflects the importance of coordination across sectors.

“Agriculture must connect with technology, technology with trade, trade with finance, and finance with youth enterprise. Fragmentation weakens progress, but coordination strengthens it,” he stated.

Samuel Nartey George encouraged young women in technology to recognise their role in shaping Ghana’s future.

“To every young woman in tech here today, you are not just participating in a conference. You are shaping Ghana’s digital industrial architecture. Your code, your platforms, your solutions and your enterprises are national assets,” he said.

On the sidelines of the conference, the Minister also clarified the rationale behind the ongoing SIM card registration exercise, describing it as necessary to protect the digital identity of citizens.

He explained that the process should not be described as a re-registration exercise but rather a proper registration aimed at correcting weaknesses in the previous system implemented between 2021 and 2023.

According to him, the earlier exercise lacked biometric verification.

“The failure to link biometric data from the National Identification Authority database with the telecommunications regulator’s database resulted in unreliable and unauthenticated data,” he said.

Samuel Nartey George added that the government reviewed the shortcomings of the previous system before introducing a new process that allows smartphone users to complete SIM registration from their homes through biometric linkage to the National Identification Authority database. Alternative arrangements, he said, will also be available for individuals without smartphones.

He assured the public that the exercise would be conducted in a humane and efficient manner to avoid the difficulties experienced during the previous registration process.

The Minister stressed that securing SIM registration is critical because phone numbers are increasingly linked to financial and digital services, making it essential to protect citizens’ digital identities.

Meanwhile, the Director-General of GI-KACE, Ing. Dr. Collins Yeboah-Afari, called for greater inclusion of women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) to strengthen innovation and sustainable development.

He noted that the FEMITECH initiative has, over the past four years, evolved into a platform that promotes collaboration, policy dialogue and capacity development among academia, industry and government.

Dr Yeboah-Afari added that women currently represent about 29 per cent of the global STEM workforce and only 22 per cent in fields such as engineering and emerging technologies.

Closing this gap, he stressed, is essential to expanding opportunities and advancing development goals including quality education, gender equality and decent work.

Also speaking at the forum, the Deputy Director-General for Managerial Operations at the National Communications Authority, Mrs Etta Mosore, highlighted the importance of regulatory compliance in building trust and protecting users in Ghana’s expanding digital ecosystem.

She explained that while technological innovations often evolve faster than regulatory frameworks, institutions such as the Data Protection Commission, the Cyber Security Authority and the National Communications Authority collaborate to ensure that digital services operate within safeguards that protect users’ data and rights.

Mrs Mosore further encouraged developers, startups and technology innovators who collect or process user data to comply with data protection requirements and obtain the appropriate licences to ensure accountability and trust.

She added that the National Communications Authority is also promoting innovation through regulatory sandbox initiatives that allow startups to test emerging technologies in controlled environments while safeguarding consumers.

Mrs Mosore encouraged stronger collaboration among women in the technology sector, stressing that regulatory frameworks are not meant to stifle innovation but to create a secure and trusted environment for digital growth.