Minister for Communications, Digitalisation, and Innovation, Hon. Sam George, has outlined Ghana’s digital transformation progress, including major infrastructure reforms, regulatory enforcement, and international investment partnerships during his presentation at the Government Accountability Series.
He began by highlighting a critical correction in control over the national data centre. “We had realized that a private company, Smart Infraco, had 100% access to the national data center while NITA (National Information Technology Agency) had none,” he stated.
“I immediately directed that this be rectified, and NITA now has 95% access and root privileges.”
According to him, the ministry discovered that Smart Infraco had defaulted on several financial obligations including a $2 million upfront payment and a $1 million annual fee. Enforcement measures, he stressed, are underway to either recover the money or trigger the necessary legal steps for contract termination.
Speaking on the 5G rollout, the Minister said Ghana’s Next-Gen Infrastructure Company (NGIC) is moving forward with plans to install 550 5G-ready cell sites across Accra and Kumasi.
So far, sixteen sites have been approved by the National Communications Authority. He warned, “If NGIC fails to launch full commercial rollout by Q4 this year, we will revoke its exclusivity and open the space for fresh negotiations.”
Turning attention to public digital infrastructure, Sam George criticised the way the Ghana.gov platform was previously managed.
“Tens of millions of cedis were paid monthly to companies without a contract. We’ve halted that,” he said, announcing that a redesigned platform integrated with the Ghana Card and a new payment gateway will be rolled out by the end of 2025.
