Government Policies Driving the Growth of Cloud Computing in Ghana
PHOTO: AFP
Governments
are important actors in the cloud economy in several ways (UNCTAD, 2013). The
Government of Ghana, through the Ministry of Communications, is currently
building a data center, and is planning to act as a cloud service provider to
provide private cloud services and third parties as
well.
In
addition to the ICT for Accelerated Development (“ICT4AD”) policy, the
Government of Ghana, through its policies and actions, has put in place the
legal and regulatory infrastructure that is presently influencing and
progressively eliminating all the barriers to successful migration of
organizations onto cloud within the Ghanaian jurisdiction. Pillar 14 of
Ghana’s ICT4AD policy relates to security agencies using ICT to combat
cyber-crime. The pillar, among other things, prioritizes capacity building,
international cooperation, and lays the architecture for security agencies, to
enable them use ICT to combat crime, and also to ensure that the legal text of
the policy is up to date to help security agencies prosecute any cyber-crime
offenders.
The
Electronic Transaction Act (2008) articulates legislation on cloud data
transmission and storage, and prescribes punishment for offenders. The Act also
addresses issues on the fight against cyber-crime.
The Data
Protection Act, passed by the Parliament of Ghana, supports the protection of
private data of government, citizens and businesses in Ghana.
Collectively,
these laws and policies, to some extent, show Ghana’s readiness for the
advancement of cloud computing. They have been put in place to make cloud
computing more accessible and regulated in Ghana. They also create an
environment which increases the availability of cloud computing tools.
Interestingly, there are less governmental policies which create obstacles for
ICT development in Ghana as compared to other countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
ICT for
Accelerated Development Prompting Ghana’s Cloud Readiness
Ghana’s cloud readiness was
examined by comparing the favorable policies that have allowed cloud computing
to thrive in Ghana, as well as ICT infrastructure targeted at driving
socio-economic development.
The Government of Ghana,
through the Ministry of Communications, has pursued policies that are currently
helping to increase ICT infrastructure. This, in turn, increases the
availability of cloud computing tools to the vast majority of Ghanaians. The
National Telecommunications Policy for instance aims that every citizen and
resident of the Republic of Ghana shall have available, high quality and
affordable access to information and communications services to help transform
Ghana into a knowledge-based society and technology-driven economy.
This
policy recognizes the primacy of integrating and growing the wealth of
indigenous social and technical knowledge to inform, enhance and sustain the
development of Ghana as a distinct and productive player in the global
information technology society.
The Ghana
ICT for Accelerated development policy, which was also created by the Ministry
of Communications of the Republic of Ghana, and modeled after the Obama
Administration’s National Broadband Plan, has as its primary objective to
engineer an ICT-led socio-economic development process with the potential to
transform Ghana into a middle-income, information-rich, knowledge-based and
technology-driven economy and society.
The
National Information Technology Agency (“NITA”, the “Policy”), established in
2008, is the Ministry of Communication’s ICT development and implementation
arm. As at early 2011, NITA was working to revitalize the ICT4AD policy to
better accommodate the country’s current needs. In May 2011, the Policy was
reviewed to include four new thematic areas, namely, Broadband Policy, Cyber
Security Policy, Geo-Information Policy, as well as the Environment and Climate
Change Policy.
According
to Yeboah-Boateng and Seshie, 2013, ICT development in Ghana is driven by the
ICT for Accelerated Development Policy and the National Telecom Policy (“NTP”).
The goals
of the NTP, aside supporting the realization of the vision of the national
ICT4AD policy, are to establish market structures that will be most beneficial
to Ghana’s citizens and businesses, and to set in motion, the procedures and
incentives that will boost the market’s development.
Since the
first internet connection was set up in 1989, Ghana has been a regional leader
in ICT. Over the past two decades, the government and the private sector
have worked together to maintain this lead. The ITU’s “Measuring the
Information Society” report for 2012 identified Ghana as one of the most
dynamic countries, registering a 23% increase in its ICT Development Index
(“IDI”), between 2010 and 2011. Ghana’s 2012 ID1 is 2.60, from 1.61 in 2007.
This makes Ghana the most dynamic country in terms of rank change in both use
and access to ICT.
Achampong,
2012 also discussed the government’s on-going ICT4AD program, and how it has
resulted in numerous improvements in various sectors and the economy as a
whole. Achampong, 2012 further noted that the plan, which was being reevaluated
to meet the needs of the rapidly changing ICT sector, is expected to play a
major role in coming years.
The spurt
in cloud computing, as a main tool in economic advancement, will
eventually go on to create vast opportunities for Ghanaian firms in their
attempt to build world-class yet local operations, as well as induce innovation
among Ghana’s newly entrepreneurial youth.
The
National Telecommunications Policy Liberalizing ICT Sector in Ghana
Ghana has
had a strategic approach to promoting and regulating ICT. The Government of
Ghana, with the intention of building a strong ICT foundation that will further
move Ghana towards the realization of a true and inclusive information society
that would enhance economic growth, developed the National Telecoms Policy in
2005.
This
policy discusses the fair allocation of network development costs and fair
access to the network by telecommunications operators, as well as content
providers. For instance, the policy mandates that there shall be no limitations
on entry and operation in the market to provide internet services; hence
liberalizing the market, and facilitating widespread entry into the
marketplace.
The
policy is an archetype of the Government’s vision that every citizen and
resident of the Republic of Ghana should have available, high quality, and
affordable access to information and communication services that would help
transform Ghana into a knowledge-based society and technology-driven economy.
The
National Telecom Policy defines universal access to telecommunications as the
availability, through broad geographic coverage, of community-based broadband
information and communication services that include voice, data services,
access to the internet, local relevant content, community radio and Government
services that are available, affordable, and of high quality for all citizens
of Ghana.
The
policy contained a number of targets and specific goals, including:
•
Universal access for all communities and population groups in Ghana to
telephone, internet, and multimedia services by the year 2010;
•
National penetration of universal telecommunications service to reach 25% of
the population, including at least 10% in rural areas by the year 2010;
•
Connection of all schools, medical clinics, and government offices and public
and community broadcasting stations to advanced telecommunications services;
• Fully
open, private, and competitive markets for all telecommunications services;
•
Streamlined, efficient, and effective regulation of the telecommunications
industry on a fully transparent, technologically neutral, and competitively
balanced basis;
•
Affordable prices for telecommunications services, particularly for low income
citizens;
•
Profitable investment opportunities for businesses in all segments of the
market;
• Ghana
shall be seen as a first-class hub for international telecommunications and
information industry investment, jobs and development, and a leader in the
transformation of Africa toward full participation in the Information Society.
Alliance
for Affordable Internet, 2013, identifies the following as specific policy
goals of NTP 2005:
·
achieving
universal access to telephone, internet and multimedia services by 2010; and
·
national
penetration of universal telecommunications services to reach 25% of the
population, including at least 10% in rural areas by the year 2010.
In many
respects, the growth of Ghana’s ICT sector over the immediate decade has
exceeded all expectations, showing that the implementation of NTP 2005 has been
a success. For instance, between 2005 and the end of 2012, mobile penetration
grew from 13.28% to 100.28%. Mobile telephone and payphone subscription
increased by 200% over a decade, while internet usage is growing steadily with
increased capacity for the deployment of 4th Generation Applications.
Frempong,
2012 noted that significant improvements have been seen in the Ghanaian ICT
industry as a result of the implementation of the strategies coming out of the
ICT4AD and National Telecom Policy, but notes that there is still a lot to do.
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