Ms Shaima Hussein, Deputy Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), has urged Ghana to prioritise locally developed artificial intelligence (AI) solutions that address national needs, strengthen public institutions and safeguard the country’s digital sovereignty.
She said digital transformation efforts must focus on solutions that responded to Ghana’s development priorities rather than relying solely on technologies developed elsewhere.
“What we need to support here is a local solution. And that’s actually the ultimate goal of our digital portfolio,” she said.
Ms Hussein made the call at the opening of a three-day Digital and AI Champions Training for government officers selected from Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), Monday in Accra.
The training, organised by the Ministry of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations in partnership with UNDP, with funding from the Government of Japan, is under the Accelerating Public Sector Digital Transformation through Capacity Building programme.
The programme sought to equip public officials with the knowledge and skills to identify institutional challenges, adopt appropriate digital solutions and improve government efficiency.
Ms Hussein said Ghana had established a strong foundation for digital transformation through initiatives such as the Ghana Card, interoperable payment systems and Ghana.gov, but needed to strengthen public institutions’ ability to use digital infrastructure, data and AI to improve service delivery.
“We need to support local solutions, local systems, and systems that speak to the needs of the country and respect its sovereignty,” she said.
She said responsible AI adoption required institutional capacity, effective data governance and ethical safeguards, adding that public officials must be equipped to assess AI solutions, protect public data and retain responsibility for decisions made using such technologies.
The Digital and AI Champions Training, Ms Hussein would therefore help participants identify data gaps and institutional barriers within their respective ministries and determine where coordinated interventions could deliver the greatest impact.
She said an AI accelerator component would provide a practical pathway for developing use cases by clarifying problems, assessing institutional readiness and risks, and designing responsible experiments.
At the end of the training, Ms Hussein said the UNDP and the Ministry would convene a strategic dialogue to examine digital governance priorities and agree on next steps towards developing an integrated digital and AI portfolio across government.
The initiative, she said, aimed to equip 50 government officers as certified Digital and AI Champions, while strengthening the capacity of 40 chief directors and 120 directors to commission, procure, govern and lead digital initiatives.
Mr Emmanuel Ofori, Director of Innovations at the Ministry of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, urged public sector institutions to treat AI adoption as a strategic management and decision-making priority rather than the sole responsibility of information technology professionals.
“AI is for decision making. It’s a decision making or decision support technology. It is not IT,” he said.
Mr Ofori noted that Ghana had made significant progress in digital transformation through initiatives such as digital government services, national digital identification and interconnected mobile money services, which had helped improve access, efficiency and interactions between citizens and public institutions.
However, he stressed that the next phase of the country’s digital transformation must move beyond individual technologies and isolated projects towards a more coordinated, problem-driven approach.
He described the Digital Champions initiative as an important step towards building the capacity needed to accelerate public sector innovation.
He, therefore, urged participants to identify operational bottlenecks, improve the use of data and explore how digital technologies could address challenges within their institutions.
“The success of this programme will be measured by what changes because you were here. When you return to your respective institutions, I hope you will carry with you new perspectives, practical ideas and confidence to question processes that can be improved,” he added.
Madam Izumi Kume, Coordinator for Economic Cooperation at the Embassy of Japan, said the training reflected Japan’s commitment to supporting Ghana’s digital transformation through capacity building and local ownership.
She encouraged participants to apply the knowledge acquired to improve public administration and deliver better services to citizens.