Israel Ambassador to Ghana, Shlomit Sufa, has expressed her country’s readiness to lend support for efforts to digitise the economy.
Israel, she explains, is a pioneer in the global development of disruptive cybersecurity solutions and innovation, as well as the design of revolutionary cyber policy; and as Ghana embarks on an aggressive digitalisation drive, Israel’s experience could be useful to the country.
“Our overall aim is to partner government and other relevant stakeholders to structure and shape the innovation ecosystem in Ghana for development. I must say that I have been very impressed with the level of work done by our Trade and Economic Mission in sharing Israeli capabilities in fields such as fintech, cybersecurity, innovation, agriculture, water, digital health, communication technology and homeland security with you – the private sector in Ghana,” she said in Accra.
Ambassador Sufa spoke during a cocktail event themed ‘Ghana’s digitalisation drive, the role of partnerships for growth’, which was organised by the Israel Embassy.
She explained that Israeli businesses are ready to partner with their Ghanaian counterparts in order to spur economic growth, create shared prosperity and strengthen ties between the countries.
“There is one sector that I am particularly interested in, especially as Ghana strives to consolidate its digital innovation ecosystem. I would like to make particular mention of the cybersecurity sector, which is a key enabler of the digitalisation agenda. Israel is a world-leader in cybersecurity and only second to the United States. This is due to a variety of factors, including an incomparable concentration of professionals and vast government support,” she emphasised.
With the introduction of Cybersecurity Act, 2020, she said, several opportunities for partnerships exist – particularly in critical information infrastructure.
Head of Economic Mission at the Embassy, Ayelet Levin-Karp, lamented how the world has been severely disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite the pandemic’s impact, she said Ghana has changed and developed a great deal during this period, both economically and financially. “Ghana’s digitalisation drive and innovation ecosystem is in many ways leading the way and driving growth in many other sectors, bringing new opportunities for financial inclusion, access to services, better governance and a stronger economy.
She added: “I believe that Ghana has all it takes to succeed in this digital transformation agenda and transform its economy, and improve its people’s wellbeing. We also appreciate government’s ambition to transform Ghana into an innovation hub in the sub-region, and to promote entrepreneurship as a means of tackling the challenge of youth unemployment. It might not happen overnight, but it is progressing as we speak”.
