Ghana Digital Innovation Week (GDIW) 2023 has been launched in Accra, with a call for Ghanaians to fully participate in the events planned for the event, which will be held at the Accra International Conference from November 6–8.
Ghana Digital Innovation Week (GDIW) is a nationwide series of events designed to highlight and celebrate achievements in the country’s digital innovation ecosystem.
The GDIW enables various actors to learn, share ideas, and form networks in order to improve and accelerate the growth and development of Ghana’s digital innovation sector.
The Israeli Ambassador to Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, H.E. Shlomit Sufa, spoke at the launch on Wednesday and said, “It is like a dream coming true for the third time and hopefully for many years more.”
She stated that GDIW improves and grows stronger every year. “We believe that we will make a better contribution with the programme and the many different elements that will be available during this year’s edition,” H.E. Sufa stated.
“We are also very proud to be able to partner with such very strong partners as Germany, GIZ, and Ghana to work together in synergy to support and develop the digital innovation ecosystem of Ghana.”
Giving their reflections on the past events, a Council Member of Ghana Hubs Network, Gordon Adomdza, said: “This unique week focuses on celebrating and creating an ecosystem for traditional digital innovation in Ghana. We are happy to see this event continue to grow stronger”.
The Head of Operations at Accra Digital Centre, David Ofori, added: “It is interesting that this is the third year of GDIW. It has started with three countries, namely Germany, Ghana, and Israel. This year is poised to give us an exciting event”.
Ofori who also represents the National Enterprise and Innovation Programme (NEIP), said they had benefited a lot from this cooperation inspired by GDIW.
“Through this collaboration, we were able to bring to life what we called the ecosystem.” The Hubs Network Council Member mentioned that there are 66 members. But Ghana as a country has about 125 hubs. So, it tells you that the snowball effect it is having across all the regions in Ghana”.
“This year, being the third edition, will catapult us to a different dimension”, Ofori stated at the launch.
The theme of GDIW 2023, Innovate, Collaborate, Elevate: Shaping a Future of Endless Potential’ was also unveiled by the trilateral partners at the launch.
This year’s GDIW will begin with regional events in Tamale, Koforidua, and Kumasi, all in the Northern, Eastern, and Ashanti regions.
The week-long series of events will climax with a high-profile conference to be graced by Ministers of State, diplomats, and business leaders, among others, at the Accra International Conference from November 6–8, 2023.
The GDIW 2023 is expected to break the previous records of over 6,000 attendees, 96 exhibitions, and 60 informative sessions set in 2021 and 2022.
GDIW aims to promote discourse on enhancing digital literacy and adoption, particularly in remote areas, by involving participants from across the country.
The GDIW was created and co-owned by actors from the private sector, academia, policymakers, Development Partners, and Civil Society Organisations, with assistance from the Digital Transformation Centre.
It is being carried out on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) by the Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
The GDIW is also held in collaboration with MASHAV, Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation, through the Embassy of Israel in Ghana, the Ministries of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation, and Communication and Digitalization.
