Do we need a national AI policy?

By Kwami AHIABENU (Dr)

Implementation is the bane of Ghana’s plethora of public policies. The country is blessed with multitude of fine policies, however, most of them are gathering dust on shelves across multiple institutions and agencies.

Further there is a of policy harmonization which means the policy space is fraught with a lack of co-ordination, unrealistic implementation plans and the provision of resources.

Also, some policies take a long time to develop therefore by the time they are ready for implementation they become stale and irrelevant.

It does not help that policy formulation is done without concrete evidence, and the process and constructs are cast in stone without in built flexibility and dynamism which impact policy implementation.

Given this, does Ghana need more policies? Specifically does Ghana need a National AI Policy? In the world today there are multiple approaches to AI policy formulation reflecting different regulatory philosophies and priorities.

For example, the Europe Union (EU) took an approach of developing a comprehensive regulatory framework, known as the EU AI Act, which is a risk-based regulatory framework that classifies AI systems by potential harm, imposing strict requirements on high-risk AI while promoting transparency, accountability, and ethical AI development in the European Union.

On the other hand, the UK, is adopting a lighter, more flexible approach, avoiding strict regulations and instead favoring sector-specific guidance.

The USA follows a decentralized, innovation-first approach, relying on self-regulation and sectoral policies rather than overarching AI laws. In this direction, executive orders and agency-specific guidelines drive AI governance rather than a single legislative act.

The China approach is remarkedly different from market-driven USA or the ethics-first EU since it is a top-down, government-controlled AI strategy. China AI development is guided by the “New Generation AI Development Plan” (2017), aiming to make China the global AI leader by 2030.

Comparison with the UK & Europe, China and the USA

Factor	China	UK & Europe	USA
Regulation Type	Government-controlled	Ethics-based, risk-based	Market-driven, innovation-first
AI Strategy	National AI dominance, surveillance	Balanced innovation & regulation	Tech-driven leadership, free-market approach
Privacy Focus	State access to data	GDPR (strict user privacy)	Limited, sector-based privacy laws
AI & Security	AI for social control & military	Risk mitigation & safety	National security & military applications
Industry Role	State-backed enterprises dominate	Private sector government oversight	Private companies lead AI innovation

When it come to the vexed question on if Ghana needs a national AI policy, the jury is still out, though there is consensus without a clear policy, Ghana risks falling behind in innovation and digital transformation.

The evolution of AI comes with a lot of regulation and ethical issues, an AI policy, therefore ensures AI development aligns with national values, traditions, culture, data privacy, and ethical considerations while at the same time providing guidance on the prevention of misuse or biases in AI systems.

Also, AI comes with millions of economic and job opportunities since AI can drive economic growth, automate tasks, and create new industries. A national AI therefore can provide the roadmap on how AI can support job creation rather than just replacing existing ones.

Further, the success of AI in Ghana is a function of attracting requisite investment and research, thus a national AI policy provides the structure that can attract international investors, tech companies, and researchers since it will contribute to the creation of a stable regulatory environment for AI to thrive in Ghana.

Lastly, by crafting a well thought out AI policy, Ghana can leverage AI to improve governance, automate public administrative tasks, and enhance service delivery in areas like healthcare, security, and education among others.

Implementation challenges: how to make it work?

In 2022, the government of Ghana started the formulation of an AI policy to position itself as a leader in AI within Africa. With support from partners like GIZ, the government developed the draft National AI Strategy (2023-2033), focusing on 8 key pillars: Expanding AI Education and Training, Empowering Youth for AI Jobs, Enhancing Digital Infrastructure, Facilitating Data Access and Governance, Developing a Robust AI Ecosystem, Accelerating AI Adoption Across Sectors, Investing in Applied AI Research and Promoting AI in the Public Sector.

In January 2025, Communications Minister-designate Samuel Nartey George emphasized the government’s ambition to make Ghana Africa’s AI hub by 2028 through reviewing existing strategies and collaborating with global technology companies to foster innovation.

Due to our past poor policy implementation challenges, however there is a need to disrupt policy formulation process by adopting radical innovative, dynamic approaches that modernize the policy formulation process anchored on new strategies and processes. This approach can ultimately contribute to making policies work better.

A starting point is to evolve a new tactic to policy formulation premised on a bottom-up approach, deep stakeholder consultation and the courage to truncate policy development if there is no tangible buy-in from stakeholders.

Given the subject matter of AI, considerations can be given to agile policy labs and iterative development through the creation of cross-sector innovation labs that employ agile methodologies and design thinking. These labs will be tasked with developing rapid prototype policy ideas, run small-scale pilots, and iteratively refine proposals based on real-time feedback from stakeholders.

The goal of this approach is to facilitate swift adaptation to emerging challenges and technological advances while creating framework to ensure seamless policy implementation.

Another approach is crowdsourced digital deliberation, where interactive radio shows and online surveys can be used to tap into a broad spectrum of expertise and public opinion, ensuring that the policies are inclusive, transparent, and reflective of current societal needs.

In conclusion, even though Ghana has a history of struggling with policy implementation, it must take a radical approach to ensure the success of it AI policy including making the AI policy practical, adaptable, inclusive, enforceable and and aligned with societal and economic goals.

>>>the writer is a Technology Innovations Consultant. You can reach him at [email protected]

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