Chief of Staff at the Office, Dr Julius Debrah, has stressed the need for Ghana’s One Million Coders Programme to translate digital skills training into jobs, entrepreneurship and productive economic opportunities for young people.
He said the country must move beyond training and certification to ensure that beneficiaries can apply their skills to real-world challenges and participate meaningfully in the digital economy.
Speaking at MOBEX Africa 2026, Dr Debrah said Ghana’s digital transformation must be supported by investments in people, infrastructure and institutions capable of developing and deploying technology for national development.
“Our generation must also build digital highways,” he said, referring to the networks, data systems, skills and institutions needed to support modern economic activity.
He explained that digital infrastructure alone would not deliver meaningful transformation unless people could access and benefit from it.
“The true measure of digital transformation is whether it creates opportunity for young persons, improves a public service, strengthens a business and solves a real problem in a community,” Dr Debrah said.
He described the One Million Coders Programme as an important investment in Ghana’s digital future, noting that it could equip young people with skills in coding, artificial intelligence, data analytics, cybersecurity and other practical areas.
Dr Debrah also commended the Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Sam George, for taking the programme’s implementation to training centres and other facilities across the country.
He cited plans to provide 2,000 additional laptops to support 40 new learning centres at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), describing the initiative as an example of the practical measures needed to support implementation.
He said government must continuously assess how its policies are working on the ground and make improvements where necessary.
“Our commitment is that opportunity must reach places near and far,” he said.
Dr Debrah added that a young person’s location should not determine their ability to participate in Ghana’s technology ecosystem.
“The young person’s location must never determine the size of his or her future,” he stressed.
However, he warned that the programme’s success should not be measured solely by the number of people trained or certificates awarded.
“We must not celebrate 1 million certificates if they do not lead to 1 million pathways into productive enterprises,” he said.
According to Dr Debrah, the next priority must be to connect trained participants to employment opportunities in Ghanaian businesses, public institutions and international companies, alongside internships, remote work and business process outsourcing.
He also encouraged the development of technology-driven businesses capable of addressing challenges in agriculture, healthcare, education, transport, finance and local government.
He said young developers and data analysts should be equipped to create practical solutions that improve service delivery, strengthen businesses and support economic growth.
Dr Debrah’s remarks reinforce the importance of linking digital skills development to employment and enterprise creation as Ghana seeks to build a workforce capable of meeting the demands of a changing economy.