Boosting career readiness of Ghanaian youth in ICT

With Ghana’s dedication to ‘Moving Beyond Aid’ and expanding its local digital economy, there has been a lot of noteworthy achievements throughout the years.

Notable among these include:

Ghana recording the highest internet penetration rate (53%), as well as the highest e-Connectivity Index (86.43), in the West African Sub-region, in 2022.

Ghana’s close to 19 million unique mobile subscribers, equivalent to 67 percent of the population, which is signi cantly higher than the Sub-Saharan African average of 44 percent.

Ghana toping African countries with the fastest internet speed in the latest global ranking as well as its signi cant investments in rural network coverage through its Rural Telephony Project which has helped increase the communication coverage rate in underserved communities from 83% to 95% by providing a ordable ICT infrastructure

Huawei is proud to have contributed to many of these achievements including the government’s Rural

Telephony and Digital Inclusion Project. Through this project, Huawei deployed 2,000 base stations in rural areas and provided voice and data services to 3.4 million people, 2,000 schools, and 200 rural clinics.

All of these achievements have paved way for Ghana to transition towards a ourishing digital economy; with the younger generation being the main driving force behind this progress. However, it is undeniable that the demand for digital-skilled talents in Ghana exceeds its supply.

Research suggests that by 2030, 50 percent of all jobs and 75-80 percent of the formal sector jobs in Ghana will require essential digital skills as a prerequisite. This reality hurdles young people from fully ful lling their potential in the digital era. To bridge this gap, Huawei, as a world-leading ICT company and a long-time partner of the Ghanaian Government, is committed to improving the digital skills capacity of more Ghanaians by introducing the ‘LEAP digital talent programwhich promotes the 'Leadership', 'Employability’, 'Advancement', and 'Possibilities' of people by equipping them with su cient digital skills.

Under the LEAP program, we are

As a scholar, Professor Adei has authored and co-authored more than 25 books and 8 book chapters. He has also written more than 100 articles, keynote addresses and papers. Among his well-known books are Leadership and Nation Building, The Promise of Leadership: The Chances of Ghana Having the Leadership to Move the Country from Third to First World, Called to Lead, Introduction to Economic Science, Twelve Keys to Financial success and Retirement Planning: Taking the Tire out of Retirement Speaking in an interview, Bishop Gideon Titi-Ofei, who is the host and the Presiding Bishop of the Pleasant Place Church, said LEADTIONARY aims to create a world of inspirational leadership ideas that grow leaders. He said LEADTIONARY uses inspirational approach to leadership growth and development instead of the traditional informational approach used by many organizations and academic institutions.

“The latter teaches the principles of leadership whiles the former talks to/about personalities behind the principles.

In the inspirational approach, leadership practitioners share their experiences and ideas intended to inspire a generation of leaders who can lead change, drive innovation, and solve complex problems,” he added.

Bishop Titi-Ofei noted that every recognized leader is a proven problem solver, saying “problem solving is what separates a leader from a follower.” aiming to provide ICT training to a hundred thousand (100,000) people from 2022 to 2024 in Ghana, together with our partners from industry and academia.

In addition to providing world-class training lessons and certi cates to policymakers, young graduates and ICT professionals while improving the digital literacy skills of the public, Huawei is also dedicated to enhancing the hands-on experience of the program’s bene ciaries. It is against this backbone that we established the Ghana ICT Talent Development Centre (GITDeC) in Ghana, to boost the career readiness of the youth interested in joining the ICT industry and equip them with hands-on experience in the real-world environment.

The Ghana ICT Talent Development Centre has been set up to o er training in the eld of telecommunications equipment installation, standardized quality control, EHS (Environmental, Health, and Safety) compliance, and the use of digital delivery platforms. All of these courses are designed based on the demands of real-world jobs.

There will be full-time quali ed instructors and skilled engineers on-site to guide and support the trainees. “There is no need to fear the wind when your roots are deep”, says an African proverb. At Huawei, we believe that the LEAP program, will widely and deeply spread the roots of digital prosperity in Ghana.

This initiative strongly advocates for putting people, especially the youth, at the centre of the spotlight and investing immensely in people with the ultimate goal of realizing the growth of the youth, their communities and societies, as well as their beloved country. With this approach, economic advancement is inevitable.

We also see the launch of the Ghana ICT Talent Development Centre as a clarion call for more collaborations. The goals of ICT talent development and adequate digital skills provision cannot be achieved by an individual. “It takes a village to raise a child,” as the saying goes.

We must therefore closely collaborate with government, industry, and academia, as well as encourage more domestic and international resources, expertise and partnerships. This will enable us build an ecosystem which is open to everyone and from which all parties can bene t.

We rmly believe that, with a strong supply of digital talent and an extensive collaboration among stakeholders, the full bloom of Ghana’s digital future would be within reach.

Trade experts, business executives, and advocates of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) from across the continent have expressed concerns about the slow progress on the rati cation of the Protocol on the movement of people.

The Agreement has, thus far, been signed by fty-four of the fty- ve African Union (AU) Member States. Forty-four countries have deposited their instrument of rati cation, but only four have rati ed the Protocol on the movement of people.

Intra-African trade, currently less than 15 percent of the continent’s total trade, is largely sti ed by stringent entry rules making it strenuous for citizens to move from one country to another.

In a document released at the end of a three-day Africa Prosperity Dialogue held in Ghana from 26 to 28 January on the theme “AfCFTA: From Ambition to Action - Delivering Prosperity Through Continental Trade,” African countries are called upon to “accelerate the rati cation of the Protocol.”

The Protocol - initially contained in the 1991 Abuja Treaty - aims to facilitate and increase the movement of Africans within Africa, while enhancing their rights to entry, residence, and establishment in AU member states.

With more people able to move freely, countries will easily tap into a wider labor market to bridge skills gaps while trading across borders.

The Africa Prosperity Dialogue focused on issues relating to AfCFTA rati cation, market access, dispute resolution, negotiations on Phase II of the Agreement, industrialization, private sector, innovation and technology, nanc- ing and resource mobilization, partnerships for impact, and free movement of persons.

The outcome document also contains a commitment to “Ratify the AU Protocol on the Free Movement of people and select a champion to ensure early entry into force."

In fact, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of Ghana was called upon to champion the Protocol on the free movement of persons. The president said he would “readily accept in all humility.” He cautioned, however, that “I need the approval of the AU before I can become the champion of anything”

President Akufo-Addo urged “all of us here to see ourselves as champions of intra-African trade,” adding “We cannot a ord to fail. As African nations, we must join hands with each other and work diligently to pursue this noble cause.”

The Dialogue was organized by the African Prosperity Network in partnership with the AfCFTA Secretariat, the Government of Ghana, UNDP, and the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). It brought together business executives and associations, policy leaders, trade experts, women, and young entrepreneurs, and senior government representatives who brainstormed and identied quick wins to move the AfCFTA initiative from ambition to action.

“Continental integration is an existential necessity, and therefore a natural destiny for Africa,” said Stephen Karingi, Director of Regional Integration and Trade, ECA.

“When our governments sign or ratify an agreement of this nature, they are making a collective prom- ise to all of us…It is thus incumbent on all of us to support them to be true to their words, but also to hold them to account when they fall short,” said Melaka Desta, Coordinator of the African Trade Policy Centre at the ECA.

“Let Africans roam freely. Free movement of people is a must if Africa wants to enjoy the full benets of the AfCFTA,” said Joseph Atta-Mensah, Senior Regional Adviser on Trade, ECA.

Organizers agreed to “meet annually, under the Africa Prosperity Dialogue,” and take stock of the progress of Africa’s prosperity agenda. It was also agreed that development partners including ECA and UNDP will continue to provide coordinated support to governments and businesses to ensure the full implementation of the AfCFTA.

Independent oil and gas, exploration and production group, Tullow, has projected to invest $300 million in its operations in Ghana. The money will be spent mainly on its Jubilee operations and will include over $100 million in infrastructure.

The company’s planned investment in Ghana is part of a $400 million amount the company intends to spend this year on its operations in Africa.

An amount of $40 million will be spent in Gabon; $20 million in Côte d’Ivoire; $10 million in Kenya and $30 million on exploration and appraisal activities.

The company’s annual expenditure is an increase of $50 million compared to 2022 as a consequence of deferrals from that year, increased equity in Ghana for the full year, and ongoing infrastructure investment in Jubilee South East, which will account for 40 per cent of Ghana capital spend in 2023.

The company said its decommissioning expenditure is expected to be $90 million in the United King dom (UK) and Mauritania, including deferrals from 2022, with less than $30 million of decommissioning liabilities in the UK and Mauritania remaining at the end of 2023.

“Additionally, starting in 2023, $30 million is expected to be paid annually into escrow for future decommissioning of currently producing assets in Ghana and parts of the non-operated portfolio,” it said. It said, cash taxes are expected to be in excess of $300 million in in the year under review (at $80/bbl) as historical capital allowances in Ghana will have been fully utilised in the rst quarter of 2023.

“Tullow said free cash ow for the full year 2023, post hedging, is expected to be $200 million at an average oil price of $100/bbl ($100 million at $80/bbl); this assumes revenue receipts for 15 cargos lifted from the Jubilee eld and four cargos lifted from the TEN elds in Ghana during the year.

Capital investment in 2023, particularly in Ghana, is expected to support production growth through to 2025 and free cash ow generation of $700-800 million at 80/bbl for the two years 2024 and 2025 based on 2P reserves only, which will further reduce net debt and strengthen Tullow’s balance sheet,” it said.

It said Tullow’s commodity hedge portfolio provides oil price downside protection at $55/bbl for 64 per cent of forecast sales volumes to May 2023 and 40 per cent of forecast sales volumes from June 2023 through to May 2024.

The company added that with the majority of hedges executed as part of the 2021 debt re nancing rolling o , Tullow will have increased exposure to higher oil prices from May 2023 onwards.

“Tullow plans to build out its commodity hedge portfolio for the second half of 2023 and into 2024, looking to maintain material upside exposure whilst securing protection against a severe oil price downturn,” it added.

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