Soon after Joe Biden was projected to be the president-elect of the United States of America, conversations began around persons he could appoint to lead the various sectors of the US government and what that would mean for the key players and stakeholders.
In the tech industry, various names popped up for the potential heads of the departments and taskforces that would play oversight roles to the industry.
Joe Biden’s yet to be sworn-in administration, has been compared to Barack Obama’s and some analysts have said that he doesn’t look like he would be very friendly with Silicon Valley. This wouldn’t come much as a surprise, looking at the growth of big tech in the valley, and how the leaderships of various countries have tried to regulate their activities.
In Ghana, there have been conversations about what the manifestoes of the main political parties contain, and what that would mean for the various sectors. There have been conversations and forums on manifesto and policy promises for the entertainment industry, the oil and gas industry, the agric sector and many more.
However, one conversation that has not come up much is what the parties’ plan for the tech industry in general is. One sector in the industry that the politicians have taken notice of is the fintech space.
The Mobile Money Payments Interoperability System has been developed, with the assimilation of banks and mobile money platforms, and a lot more innovations. The Payment Systems and Services Act 2019 has been passed to regulate the payments sector, and the vice president, Dr Bawumia recently launched the Universal QR Code too.
These steps taken by the government have helped grow the fintech space, with many companies coming up to take advantage of the opportunities that the policies and activities have presented.
In education, the NPP says it has incorporated technology into the curriculum and got some tech firms to help in delivering these services. It mentions the iBox education portal, which allowed BECE candidates to learn online, by registering with their BECE ID. It is important to note that this portal was originally scheduled to have a closing date of November 30, 2019. However, according to a World Bank report, the date was revised to November 30, 2020. The delay was mainly attributed to the tardiness in the installation in schools. The party also mentions the construction of 6 out of 20 promised Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) Centres in some universities in the country.
The NPP government also installed some CCTV cameras in Accra, in a bid to improve security and surveillance in the capital, and hope to expand it later. The question of the privacy of citizens, and the kind of features these cameras have, is a conversation for another day.
The party in its manifesto said, “…tech companies have collaborated with the government in the delivery of public services… We will deepen this relationship in the next four years to grow the core economic clusters.”
On tourism, the party says it will “accelerate tech adoption and build a digital economy.” When it comes to education, it says, it will “expand the use of technology as learning aids in schools by students and teachers.”
The NDC, on the other hand, has promised a lot of things in various sectors. In the power sector, it says that it will deploy smart technology that will reduce power losses.
The NDC also promises to provide echo sounders to canoe fishers to facilitate the use of technology in their work. The mining industry will also hope the NDC will keep its promise of helping them keep “abreast with enhanced technology by promoting the use of industry 4.0 imperatives…”
In TVET education, the NDC says it will deepen life skills, technology, innovation and entrepreneurship.
Another promise from the party is to “work to develop a modally complementary system of transportation that is safe, efficient, convenient, reliable with cutting edge technology” (The matter of BRT and Aayalolo on my mind as I type this).
One very huge promise that the NDC makes is that it will develop 5G technology in Ghana. I know many people in the tech space who have questioned the idea of 5G in Ghana, looking at the cost of infrastructure to enable it, the potential cost of 5G internet bundles in an economy that already has expensive data cost, and the fact that we may not have even developed 4G technology in our country to its full potential.
One point where both parties seem to nearly meet is their promises on the science, technology and innovation fund. This fund is supposed to help improve and develop research into science technology and innovation, as we grow as an economy. According to the NPP, the bill for this fund has been gazetted and will be laid before parliament, should they be voted for. The NDC has also promised to develop a bill on the same thing and get it passed.
Both parties did not highlight the need to reform our security agencies, and start hiring cyber security experts, who will be our first line of defense in the cyber world.
Interestingly, despite these issues, the stakeholders in the tech industry have not asked the parties about the things that concern them. They have also not asked the political parties to explain what their promised policies are.
The Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors has organised fora for both the NPP and the NDC to come out and explain their policy promises to the oil and gas industry. The Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana and some organisations also had an event, where representatives from the NPP and the NDC spoke on their policies for the agric sector.
For whatever reason, the tech industry in Ghana, seems hesitant to openly involve politicians when it comes to policy discussions. Perhaps, it is due to the general political climate and the budding nature of the tech industry. It is difficult to fathom why we were denied this engagement. It is unfortunate. The situation prevented dialogue with the policy-makers, and therefore will most likely not give them a first-hand understanding of what the industry needs and what should be done.
The silence on the part of the stakeholders in the industry, in the long run affects what the conversations the media will have on these issues.
If the silence, and fear of victimisation go on, the industry and the ecosystem will not grow. If we want to have an ecosystem that will be able to effectively lobby and influence decision-making, we must open up and be ready to be part of conversations. Leaders in the industry must be ready to speak, blog and come out with their research papers that will direct conversation.
—
The writer, Jeffrey Owuraku Sarpong, is a new media journalist with Citi TV/Citi FM and citinewsroom.com