JAK calls on the Youth to focus on ICT

Accra, Jan. 13 GNA - President John Agyekum Kufuor on Tuesday appealed to the Ghanaian youth to focus on the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector and exploit all the prospects it offered because it provided the main avenue to prosperity in the millennium.

President Kufuor made the call when inaugurating the first Ghana Multimedia Centre, the first of its kind in the West Africa Sub-Region at the former Ghana House in Accra.


The Centre, a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Communications and Ministry of Trade, Industry and President's Special Initiatives (PSI), is an attempt to respond to the infrastructure needs of the ICT sector.


It would provide ICT based companies with all the infrastructure they require, namely broadband connectivity, access to the Ghana Telecom SAT 3 Submarine Cable and secure a reliable supply of all utility services especially electricity and water.


President Kufuor referred to the recent World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) held in Geneva, which affirmed that multimedia technology would be the critical engine to be used to achieve the required economic growth in the world, especially in developing countries.


He said while the Centre was another initiative to nurture the budding start-up private companies that would drive the growth of the ICT sector, it would not only become a place to house new IT companies but a venue where innovation and creativity should thrive.


President Kufuor said it was also expected to promote technology transfer and diffusion and to ensure that commercialisation of products and services were professionally undertaken, adding: "Facility users will enhance their capabilities through appropriate entrepreneurial development programmes in areas like finance, marketing and business management."

He said he was optimistic that the Centre, would inject dynamism and resourcefulness into the efforts of local entrepreneurs in addition to fulfilling its role as the incubation centre for the IT start-ups.


Mr Albert Kan-Dapaah, Minister of Communications, said the inauguration of the Centre was a landmark achievement in Ghana's determination to move with the rest of the world into the emerging information rich and knowledge based society.


He said one of the country's immediate challenges was how to facilitate the rapid development, upgrading, improvement and deployment of the necessary ICT infrastructure in all key areas.


Mr Kan-Dapaah said with the inauguration of the Centre, the Ministry intended to enter the Free Zone Enclave in Tema to facilitate the development of a Technology Park to attract massive ICT investment in Ghana.


"Our plan is that the Technology Park should become the business destination of choice for local and foreign investors, hopefully becoming the Sub-Region's premier business location", he said.


Mr Alan Kyerematen, Minister of Trade, Industry and President's Special Initiatives (PSI), said the Centre was another demonstration of the Government's determination to change the fundamental structure of the economy from an agrarian to a modern and service oriented one. He said export-oriented services could yield significant foreign exchange in line with the agenda to promote an export-led growth by the Ministry.