• Ghanaian Minister Samuel Nartey George and Indian Ambassador Shri Manish Gupta met to explore partnerships in digital payments, mobile banking, and financial inclusion.

• Discussions also focused on developing Ghana as a coding hub in Africa and strengthening digital infrastructure to support innovation.

• Talks are still in the early stages, with no formal agreements signed, but both parties expressed commitment to deepening collaboration.

The Ghanaian government intends to deepen its collaboration with India in the technology sector, a key topic during a meeting on Thursday between Ghana's Minister of Communication, Digital Technologies, and Innovation, Samuel Nartey George (photo, center), and India's Ambassador to Ghana, Shri Manish Gupta (photo, left).

During their discussions, both sides explored potential partnerships in areas such as digital payments, mobile banking, and financial inclusion. They also discussed the development of Ghana's tech ecosystem, with the aspiration of positioning the country as a coding hub in Africa. Finally, the talks centered on strengthening digital infrastructure to better support innovation and entrepreneurship.

This meeting is part of the Ghanaian government's broader international cooperation efforts aimed at digital transformation, which it views as a crucial driver for socioeconomic development. In recent weeks, Ghana has notably strengthened ties with Germany, Italy, Turkey, Israel, and Denmark. This is in addition to collaborations with entities and companies such as fiber optic firm CSquared, Deloitte, the African Regional Satellite Communication Organization (RASCOM), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and Meta.

Currently, Ghana ranks 108th out of 193 countries on the United Nations e-Government Development Index, with a score of 0.6317. This is significantly higher than the African average of 0.4247 but slightly below the global average of 0.6382. India, in comparison, ranks 97th with a score of 0.6678.

Exchanges between Ghana and India are still in the initial stages. Both parties have committed to further exploring avenues for cooperation and identifying specific projects for implementation. However, no formal agreements have been signed or announced at this time, indicating that future developments will be necessary to provide more definitive insights into the prospects and potential impact of this collaboration.

By Isaac K. Kassouwi,

Editing by Sèna D. B. de Sodji