BTA2023 MTN Group and the government of Ghana have signed a landmark agreement to support the country’s flagship ‘One Million Coders Program,’ aimed at equipping young Ghanaians with artificial intelligence, coding, and digital skills to drive national digital transformation.
On the sidelines of the Mobile World Congress 2025 in Barcelona, Ghana’s Minister of Communication, Digital Technology, and Innovation, Samuel Nartey George, and MTN Group President and CEO, Ralph Mupita, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore areas of collaboration on this initiative, described as a priority for the new administration of President John Mahama.
“We engaged MTN Group on a partnership to enhance the capacity of young Ghanaians in AI, digital technology, data governance, and cybersecurity,” Minister George stated, noting MTN’s immediate willingness to support the initiative.
He also highlighted MTN Ghana’s ongoing contributions, including the donation of a state-of-the-art building to serve as a Center of Excellence for AI and software development.
Mupita expressed gratitude for the partnership and reaffirmed MTN’s commitment to supporting Ghana’s digital strategy. “We appreciate the government’s efforts in creating an enabling environment for us to contribute to building a digital ecosystem that drives growth and meets national socio-economic objectives,” he said.
Acknowledging the vast linguistic diversity across Africa, Mupita emphasized the need for the continent to develop its own large language models, software engineers, and coding talent to stay competitive in the era of generative AI.
MTN Group Senior Vice President for Markets, Ebenezer Asante, noted that the initiative aligns with MTN’s strategic vision, reinforcing its role in advancing Africa’s digital economy.
The agreement builds on MTN’s existing efforts, including the MTN Skills Academy, launched in 2023 in several operating countries, including Ghana. The Academy provides training in coding, web development, digital marketing, and data analytics, with the goal of ensuring that at least 60% of youth and adults attain basic digital proficiency by the end of 2025.
