FACTOR LOCAL CONTENT IN NATIONAL ICT, DAILY GRAPHIC, MAY 12, 2011 (Centre Spread)

Story: Charles Benoni Okine & Della Russel Ocloo

Communications Minister, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, has called on the national Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Policy Review Task Force to incorporate local content in the ICT policy to provide a better platform for local companies to participate actively in the sector.
He said local companies had been largely left out of the booming ICT sector and underscored the need for the new policy to provide opportunities for them.
Mr Iddrisu made the call at the launch of the National ICT Policy Review Forum in Accra Wednesday. The two-day forum, which is being attended by experts in the sector, will consider policies on cyber security, broadband policy, geo-information and ICT, climate change and the environment.
According to the minister, a World Bank study had revealed that there was a boost of 1.38 percentage points to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for every 10 per cent increase in broadband penetration.
Presently in Ghana, broadband penetration stands at about five per cent and it is expected to grow faster in the coming years with the entry of optic fibre networks such as Main One, Glo 1, as well as MTN.
“Having made significant strides in expanding telephone subscription to over 17 million and growing, Ghana should now be focusing on broadband penetration to ensure efficient Internet services in the country,” Mr Iddrisu said.
“Today, the e-Government Network Infrastructure project to provide broadband access for the districts is ready,” he added.
The National Communications Backbone Company has terrestrial fibre optic transmission network that runs from Accra through Takoradi, Kumasi, Sunyani and Wa to Paga and Tamale and back to Accra through Techiman, Kumasi, Nkawkaw, Ho, Akosombo and Tema.
The Vice-President, Mr John Dramani Mahama, in a speech read on his behalf by the Head of Policy Monitoring and Evaluation at the Presidency, Dr Tony Aidoo, commended the ministry’s decision to review the policy to cover new areas.
According to him, the development of broadband policy was necessary to satisfy universal obligations and promote efficiency of use.
He indicated that climate change and the environment required the development of new policies that would improve technology transfer, mitigation and adaptation.
On cyber security, Mr Mahama said over 24 high-profile cyber attacks were reported in the first three months of 2011, with the EU, the Australian Parliament and several organisations falling victim.
That, he said, was an indication for the development of a comprehensive security policy, along with reporting mechanisms, to discourage such illegalities.
The Chairman of the National Information Technology Agency (NITA), Professor Nii Narku Quaynor, expressed regret that Internet penetration had become less attractive, although Ghana pioneered the approach, and called for a periodic review of the country’s ICT policies.
The United Nation’s Development Programme (UNDP) Country Director for Ghana, Mr Kamil Kamaludeen, for his part, urged the task force to again take a critical look at the regulatory framework to anticipate the future development of the sector, while considering infrastructure to take care of the interests of all sectors of the economy.