Rethinking Technology in Ghana

Building a case for science and technology to permeate the daily lives of every Ghanaian.

ByFrancis Stephen Martinson

As I sat on the plane to Ghana, there were several thoughts that kept running through my mind. I had been on the road for almost half of my life and about two-thirds of my adult life. I have been to about 4 continents and spent considerable time on 3 of those. But I hadn’t been to the motherland for about 3 years. And within these years, things have happened and changed around me. I have stepped deeper into the world of Computer Science, Information Technology and Software Engineering. I have taught college students basic computer packages and supervised experimental software projects by students. I have, myself, been privileged to experiment same.

And then this was me, traveling to a country I had little idea about their current level of technology. During my brief stay in Ghana, I had a very busy schedule. I had loads of meetings scheduled to discuss, one-on-one and on group level, how to leverage technology for smarter business in Ghana and beyond. I was privileged to meet folks who had been in the industry for a combined total of about 100 years. Yes, the accumulated experience of those I met over a space of 2 weeks spun over 100 years. You would think I would be overwhelmed with complaints about how ridiculous it was to practice in Ghana – but I wasn’t.

They had people who had assumed roles as IT Managers and Specialists – people who had been trained to handle the Information, Technology, Networking and Security of all activities. And yet, the only gap was the seemingly low motivation to do more. It is a running story.

Ghana does not only have an abundance of Natural Resources, but she also has, equally, an abundance of technological resources. However, like our natural resources, these are heavily over-tapped and yet highly abused for the interests of both local authorities and foreign companies. I fear to say, that within the Computer Science, Information Technology and Software Engineering fields, the only gap that truly exists is the fair and equitable distribution of resources and reward.

I will get to the distribution of resources and reward, but I will tell you how I entered two different offices – one a hospital, and the other a media company. And I will tell you how these companies had all set themselves up for successes. They had people who had assumed roles as IT Managers and Specialists – people who had been trained to handle the Information, Technology, Networking and Security of all activities. And yet, the only gap was the seemingly low motivation to do more. It is a running story. In one of the offices, I sat to query the systems they used. Honestly, these were nothing inferior to what developed countries used. As a matter of fact, due to the loose security measures and their accompanying bureaucracies, these systems were easier to use. However, there seemed to be something odd about the operations of these IT guys. Could it be a lack of competent supervision? A clearer plan? Matching compensation? Or relevant motivation?

I quite remember when I was asked to give a talk about “IT for Lay People” to one of the churches in a much-developed part of Accra – I quite remember the struggle I went through. IT for Lay People? Was there ever “IT for Advanced People”? The aim of IT was to make it user friendly for Lay People – and so if an IT talk cannot be comprehended by lay people, then it is not IT at all. Could possibly be some advanced voodoo. At the end of my 1-hour talk (scheduled to have been about 30 minutes), I was humbled by the contributions of the audience.

These people are not “lay people”. These people are “everyday people”.

People who need to leverage IT for their businesses, security, automation, data analytics and reporting, communication and even in the craziest extent, robotics. That is what everyday people need. And there is the abundance of resources to make this happen in a country that has little bureaucracy, security threat and vile competition. So, what is the reason for the seemingly lower technological advancement in developing countries like Ghana?

The simpler higher-level answer would be the distribution of resources and fair compensation through wages and rewards. The West continue to battle cyber-fraud, which seems to be embedded in developing countries. A country that has a comparatively lower technological acumen cannot cause such pain and headache to a developed country, their residents and the security team that has sworn to protect them. Why does the story hold – that developing countries are mostly the hubs of cybercriminals – and yet same can’t be said about the continuous exploitation of IT Experts and Specialists by foreign companies and local companies?

Also, can we talk about the pathway to becoming an IT ‘person’. Ghana, for instance, is beginning to understand the need for the advancement of Science and Technologies. However, the education process is a sad one to behold. Somewhere last year, I had a talk with about 200 students and the affiliates of a Computer Science department in one of Ghana’s premier universities. I listened to them lament about the modules and curricula they use. It was sad to note that among them were some final year students who did not even know what career choices were available to them. These were students who were just months away from graduating.