The Office of the President in collaboration with the Ministry of Communication is organising the Ghana Digital Roadmap Conference to review the Information and Communication Technology for Accelerated Development (ICT4AD) policy document.

The conference, which is on the theme; ‘Moving Ghana Beyond Aid: Expanding the Local Digital Economy’ is slated for May 15 and 16, 2019 at the Labadi Beach Hotel.

A statement from the Communications Ministry states that the conference will review the ICT4AD policy document in line with digital opportunities and generate ideas to develop a digital strategy and an implementation plan to establish Ghana as the leader in ICT innovation in Sub-Sahara Africa by 2023.

 "The Conference seeks to identify where we are and establish the gaps that must be plugged to establish Ghana as the leader in ICT innovation in Sub-Sahara Africa by 2023," the statement said.

Specifically, the strategy seeks to:

 1. Grow the local IT industry beyond the boundaries of Ghana.

2. Bridge urban-rural divide by expanding digital services to rural and underserved communities.

3. Increase efficiency - Improve citizen experience and engagement with the government by reducing the mean time to deliver government services to citizens while increasing government revenue generation.

4. Increase transparency in government functions. Create or access insights into government datasets for innovation and improved decision making, and 

5. Bridge the digital skill divide.

 The statement said the review of the ICT4AD policy document and the development of the digital strategy is driven by the President's vision to move Ghana Beyond Aid, Ghana’s commitment to SDG 9 and AU’s Digital Economy for Africa Moonshot targets and efficiency and budget pressures.

It is also driven by citizen demands for improved and reliable services, government directives for the integration of information management services and the proven link between digital technologies and transformational/inclusive growth

 The statement noted that the recent visit by the Vice President and a team of 15 local IT Companies to the US technology centre, San Francisco (Silicon Valley) to meet with leaders in the technology industry to discuss the possibilities of developing strategic insights and partnerships to develop the Ghanaian technological industry has added a fresh impetus for the necessity to develop a roadmap within which these partnerships can be fostered and situated in line with the developmental agenda of government.

 The two-day conference is therefore designed to have industry players contribute to the development of a digital roadmap for the country. There will also be speakers and contributors with experience in the development of technology roadmaps as well as panel discussions on the impact of Digital Roadmaps on the economies of countries.

 Other themes to be discussed include:

 1. Digitization Leadership,

2. Overview of Current ICT Policy Framework and Gap Analysis,

3. Citizenship and Business Focus

4. Partnership with Private Sector/Procurement

5. Automation, eGovernment Services and Data

6. Cyber Security, Information and Knowledge Management.

7. Financial Sector/Revenue Generation

8. Industrial Technology

 The conference which opens on Wednesday May 15, 2019 will be attended by H.E. the Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Ministers of State, Chief Executives, Members of Parliament, Telecoms & Financial Sector Regulators, Judiciary, Professional Association Reps, Academia, Private Sector, FinTech’s Media, and key players in the ICT industry.

 Speakers at the Conference will include H.E. Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia (Vice president of the Republic of Ghana), Mrs. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful (Minister for Communications), Prof. Frimpong Boateng (Minister for Environment Science and Technology), Dr. Ernest Addison(Governor, Bank of Ghana), Mr. Joe Anokye (Director-General, National Communications Authority), Romeo Bugyei (CEO, IT Consortium), Prof. Clement Dzidonu (President-Accra Institute of Technology), Ms. Estelle Akofi-Sowah (Country Magager – Csquared), Mr. Selorm Adadevor(CEO – MTN), and Ms. Samia Selhem (Global Lead for Digital Development Practice)

 The statement noted that the opportunity for learning and knowledge sharing at this Conference is enormous, and urged Ghanaians to visit the event site @ www.ghanadigitalroadmap.com for registration and further clarification.