Bawumia urges Africa to embrace technology for economic growth.

Former Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has called on African policymakers to adopt a mindset of possibilities and embrace technology to drive economic transformation.

Speaking at the 27th Annual Conference of Beyond Borders: A Myth or a Mandate for Africa’s Progress? at Harvard University in Boston, Dr. Bawumia emphasized the need for Africa to leverage digitalization to accelerate development.

“Policymakers must act with a mindset of possibilities. We should embrace technology and not be intimidated by it. We must believe that we can leapfrog advanced nations in many areas if we put our minds to it,” he stated.

Dr. Bawumia highlighted Ghana’s economic evolution, pointing out the country’s historical reliance on an informal system for over 60 years after independence and then urged African leaders to adopt a mindset of possibilities and embrace technological advancements for the continent’s progress.

However, he noted that efforts are now being made to build a formal, data-driven economy capable of competing in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

“Today, we are building formal systems and a database-driven economy to compete in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Our challenge is to use digitalization to solve current problems while laying the foundation for future jobs, leapfrogging from the Second to the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” he added.

He observed that e-commerce is thriving, with many transactions now taking place on platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and other websites. Many entrepreneurs who cannot afford to rent or build physical shops are now able to do business online at minimal cost, with deliveries facilitated by the digital address system and payments processed through mobile money interoperability.

Dr. Bawumia’s remarks highlights the importance of technology-driven policies in Africa’s quest of economic transformation. He urged governments to harness digitalization for growth, job creation, and global competitiveness.