Government is set to inaugurate the first phase of Ghana’s inaugural youth digital hub on December 1, 2024, alongside the launch of a US$5 million Endowment Fund aimed at fostering digital innovation and entrepreneurship.
Though the hub is being established at the University of Ghana, it will be accessible to students and young people nationwide, with plans underway to construct similar hubs at three other universities: Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), University of Cape Coast (UCC), and University for Development Studies (UDS).
Once completed, the facility will feature lecture halls, digital libraries, laboratories, a 2,200-seat auditorium, and hostel accommodations. These amenities will cater not only to Ghanaian students from distant regions but also to students from across Africa.
This initiative, known as the University of Ghana Digital Youth Hub, falls under the Ghana CARES ‘Obaatanpa’ programme, which focuses on COVID-19 recovery efforts. The hub is projected to be fully operational by 2025.
The project aims to create a dynamic ecosystem that will equip technology and digital entrepreneurs with the necessary knowledge and technical support to generate jobs and drive the growth of sustainable tech-based businesses in Ghana.
During a tour of the site on Tuesday, October 8, Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia spoke to the Ghana News Agency, explaining that the hub is designed to empower the youth to capitalize on the opportunities brought by the fourth industrial revolution.
He emphasized that this initiative would help expand the country’s tech entrepreneurship sector and attract foreign investments from major companies, including Google and Microsoft.
“We want to train a million youth in digital skills, and it’s not a task that cannot be done. It is possible, and we are doing it, where the hub provides us good places to do a lot of training of the youths,” Dr Bawumia said.
Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, Finance Minister, pledged timely release of funds to ensure the completion of the project within schedule, saying, “as far as payment is concerned, we’re not delaying.”
Dr Amin Adam said the hub would be modelled like the Silicon Valley to attract high-tech firms into the country to make the tech and digital sectors thrive, and create more jobs, particularly for the youth.
“We’re also establishing a US$5m endowment fund to support the management of this hub. So, everything that’s required to make it a complete digital village in the provision of skills to the youth of Ghana will be done,” he said.
He noted that the hub, along with the three others to be built at KNUST, UCC, and UDS, would serve as a key infrastructure for equipping Ghanaian youth with digital skills, aligning with the one-million jobs initiative.
Mrs. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, Minister of Communications and Digitalisation, added that the hub would enable students and tech enthusiasts to bring their ideas to life, fostering growth in Ghana’s digital economy.
She noted with through collaboration, cooperation, and coordination, the hub would unlock enormous potentials, adding that, “if the young people are provided with the digital knowledge today, they’ll provide global manpower in the future.”
Professor Nana Aba Appiah Amfo, Vice-Chancellor, University of Ghana, pledged the school’s resolve to turn the hub into a centre of excellence to provide cutting-edge solutions to the country’s digitalisation challenges.