MTN Ghana has broken ground prior to the construction of the Ghana ICT Hub, itself part of the broader Ghana Innovation Hub project to which MTN has committed US$25 million.
The Ghana ICT Hub, which will be the first of its kind in the West African sub-region, will train over 200,000 people with ICT skills and, it is hoped, generate over 100,000 jobs over the first three years.
Additionally, it will provide office spaces and meeting venues for over 100 tech start-ups and tech companies, all in a bid to serve as a catalyst for Ghana's digitalisation agenda.
The Ghana ICT Hub will, according to government, contribute to boosting Ghana's ICT and digital ecosystem by providing infrastructural development and resources to enhance ICT skills training and development across the country. The Innovation Hub includes two other projects as well as the Ghana ICT Hub: the Accra Innovation City and the Ghana Education Platform.
Speaking at the ground-breaking event, which was attended by government officials, board members of the Ghana Digital Centres Limited and MTN staff, Selorm Adadevoh, CEO of MTN Ghana, said the establishment of the Ghana ICT Hub would power Ghana to be West Africa's ICT leader through innovation and digital skills.
The Ghanaian Times report quotes him as saying: "MTN's decision to partner and support the establishment of the Ghana ICT Hub falls right in line with our Ambition 2025 roadmap of leading digital solutions for Africa's progress.”
The Minister for Communications and Digitalisation, Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, added that the decision by MTN to build an ICT hub in Ghana as part of its 25th anniversary was very critical towards realising Ghana's digital agenda.