Africa’s digital transformation must create opportunities to solve problems through innovation and unite the continent while preserving its diversity, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has said.
“The continent must take charge of its digital destiny by building systems, infrastructure, and policies that serve African priorities,” he added.
He noted that true sovereignty was about having the capacity to shape Africa’s own technological future.
Mr Ablakwa was speaking at the opening of the 2025 MOBEX Africa Tech Innovation Conference and Expo in Accra on Tuesday, attended by policymakers, innovators, investors, and technology leaders from across Africa.
It was on the theme “Resetting Africa’s Digital Identity and Sovereignty.”
Mr Ablakwa observed that when African nations depended entirely on foreign systems to manage digital data and financial transactions, it weakened autonomy, and he called for stronger regional collaboration to build home-grown digital frameworks to protect data, enhance trade, and promote inclusion.
He said Ghana, alongside other African countries, continues to advocate for fairer global policies on artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and data protection.
On the regional front, he described the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as a key platform for digital integration, explaining that trade could not thrive without seamless digital connections.
The Minister also highlighted Ghana’s partnerships with the United Arab Emirates, the European Union, and the United States to advance digital development while safeguarding African ownership.
He emphasised the growing role of the African diaspora, whose skills, capital, and experience could help accelerate digital transformation, and encouraged diaspora investment in startups and digital infrastructure while promoting better policies for skilled Africans abroad to contribute to development at home.
The Second Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Mrs Matilda Asante-Asiedu, said digital payments had become the backbone of Ghana’s financial system.
She explained that the country had seen remarkable growth in mobile money accounts, from 2.6 million in 2015 to over 24 million in 2024, showing how digital finance had become part of daily life.
She said interoperability and innovation continued to transform Ghana’s payment systems, making transactions faster, safer, and more inclusive.
However, she noted that while access and efficiency were increasing, attention must be paid to preventing exclusion and ensuring financial stability.
Mrs Asante-Asiedu revealed that the central bank was advancing initiatives such as the e-cedi, Ghana’s digital currency, and the Virtual Asset Service Providers Bill to strengthen trust and security in digital finance.
The Chief Executive Officer of MOBEX Africa, Mr George Spencer Quaye, said the conference marked a decade of progress in promoting African-led innovation and collaboration.
He added that MOBEX Africa had grown into a continental platform that connects innovators, investors, and policymakers to accelerate Africa’s digital future.
He said this year’s event reflected a renewed commitment to African ownership of the digital agenda that focused on scaling up innovation, strengthening infrastructure, expanding inclusion, and ensuring that technology impacted people’s lives.
Mr Quaye said Africa’s digital sovereignty would depend on its ability to design, build, and manage its own systems and to ensure that technology development benefited every segment of society.
BY AGNES OPOKU SARPONG
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