Ghana Digital - World Bank

1 Ghana Digital Economy DiagnosticSTOCKTAKING REPORTG hana Digital Economy DiagnosticSTOCK-TAKING REPORT 2019 The World Bank Group1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433 Telephone: 202-473-1000; Internet: rights reserved1 2 3 4 21 20 19 18 This work is a product of the staff of The World Bank Group with external contributions. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this work do not necessarily reflect the views of the World Bank Group, its Board of Executive Directors, or the governments they represent. The World Bank Group does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work.

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5 E-mail: and Layout Design: Diego CattoTablesTable of ContentsTable Relevance of the Recommendations to Development Outcomes 22 Table GDP Growth, Poverty Reduction, and Sectoral Drivers 28 Table ICT Sector Employees and Establishments in Ghana (2014) 30 Table Submarine Cables in Ghana (2017) 38 Table Terrestrial Fiber Network 39 Table Telecommunications Infrastructure Indicators across Peer Countries (2017) 40 Table Key Policy and Legislations Related to ICT/ Digital Development in Ghana 41 Table A Sample of Ghana s Digital Services 47 Table Microwork in Africa, Selected Countries 51 Table Volume and Value of MM interoperability.

6 2018 63 Table Ghana Innovation/ entrepreneurship Rankings 71 Table Research Outputs in 2016 75 Table Societal Attitudes Towards entrepreneurship 77 Table Opportunity Framework for Stakeholders 93 Table Relevance of the Recommendations to Development Outcomes 96 Table Recommendations Supporting Digital Firms and job creation 98 Table Recommendations Supporting Expansion of Digital Services 99 Table Recommendations Supporting Efficiency and Quality of Services 100 Table Government, Business, and People Payments, 2016 110 Table Annual Value and Volume of Payment Transactions by Debit, Credit, and Prepaid Cards 112 Table Government, Business, and People Payments Breakdown, 2016 113 About DE4A 9 Acknowledgements 13 Abbreviations 14 Executive Summary 171.

7 Introduction Country at a Glance Background on the Digital Economy Rationale for Digital Economy Development Diagnostic Methodology 342. DE4A Foundational Elements Digital Infrastructure Digital Platforms Digital Financial Services Digital entrepreneurship Digital Skills 843. Conclusion: A Way Forward 95 Notes 101 References 103 APPENDIX A. Digital Financial Services 109 APPENDIX B. List of Main entrepreneurship Hubs in Ghana 115 APPENDIX C. Ghana s Domestic Private Digital Platforms 117 APPENDIX D. Recommendations to Enhance the Digital Economy in Ghana 119 BoxesFiguresBox Jumia African e-Commerce Platform 53 Box Training and Support to Increase Online Presence of Ghanaian Products and Services 53 Box Rural e-Commerce Development in China, Taobao Villages 57 Box Accra Digital Center Offers Ready-to-Go Space for Digital Businesses 71 Box Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST)

8 72 Box Ashesi University s Model for Providing Practical Digital entrepreneurship Skills 74 Box Google AI Research Center 75 Box Digital Skills 84 Figure Government Initiatives that Support Digital entrepreneurship in Ghana 20 Figure Theory of Change Towards a Digital Economy in Ghana 22 Figure Recommendations Supporting Digital Firms and job creation 23 Figure Recommendations Supporting Expansion of Digital Services 24 Figure Recommendations Supporting Efficiency and Quality of Services 25 Figure Representation of a Digital Economy 29 Figure Growth in Ghana s ICT Sector 30 Figure Digital Economy Can Bring Shared Prosperity and Reduced Poverty 33 Figure Approach to Stocktaking of Ghana s Digital Economy 35 Figure UN E-Government Index across Peer Countries 44 Figure Private Digital Platforms Operating in Ghana and Selected African Countries 50 Figure Digital Commerce Rankings, Selected African Countries 52 Figure Ownership of Accounts (2014 and 2017)

9 59 Figure Value and Volume of Payment Transactions per Payment Instrument 2017 60 Figure Annual Active MM Accounts, Active MM Agents and Volume of MM Transactions 62 Figure Financial Inclusion by Account Type, 2014 versus 2017 64 Figure Mobile Money Account Use by Population Segment, 2014 versus 2017 65 Figure Mobile Money Use, 2014 versus 2017 65 Figure Tech Ecosystem Outlook, Q2 2019 73 Figure Monthly Commercial Property Rent per Square Meter ($) 73 Figure Financial Market Development Across Countries 79 Figure Government Initiatives that Support Digital entrepreneurship in Ghana 80 Figure Significance of Skills Required in the Future Workforce, by Market 85 Figure Internet Access in Schools 86 Figure Quality of Education 86 Figure Cumulative Demand for Digital Skills Training in Ghana , by Level of Skill, 2018-2030 87 Figure Significance of Digital Skills Needed in the Workforce, All Markets 88 Figure eLearning market 89 Figure Skills Affordability 90 Figure Recruitment of Employees with Digital Skills in Ghana 91 Figure Responses.

10 Will Undersupply of Digital Skills Constrain Expected Growth in the Economy 91 Figure Theory of Change Towards a Digital Economy in Ghana 97 Figure Annual Value and Volume of Payment Transactions through E-zwich and National Switch 111 About DE4 ARapid Digital transformation is reshaping our global economy, permeating virtually every sector and aspect of daily life, changing the way we learn, work, trade, socialize, and access public and private services and information. In 2016, the global Digital economy was worth some $ trillion, equivalent to percent of the World s overall GDP.