Ghana Digital Economy Diagnostic
Universal adoption and effective application of digital technologies are expected to characterize economies of the future, shaping their ability to succeed in the global marketplace and offer a better quality of life for their citizens. Disruptive...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Report |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2020
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/523231597379719030/Ghana-Digital-Economy-Diagnostic-Stock-Taking-Report http://hdl.handle.net/10986/34366 |
| Summary: | Universal adoption and effective
application of digital technologies are expected to
characterize economies of the future, shaping their ability
to succeed in the global marketplace and offer a better
quality of life for their citizens. Disruptive technologies
are already altering traditional business models and
pathways to development, yielding significant gains,
increased convenience, as well as supporting better access
to services for consumers. In 2016, the digital economy was
worth an estimated 11.5 trillion dollars worldwide,
equivalent to 15.5 percent of global GDP. It is forecast to
reach 25 percent in less than a decade, far outpacing the
growth of the ‘traditional’ economy (Huawei and Oxford
Economics 2016). Mobile money is driving financial
inclusion, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, with the
number of accounts doubling to 21 percent between 2014-17.
African e-commerce is also rapidly growing, at an estimated
annual rate of 40 percent. Over the past five years, there
has been a tenfold increase across the region in the supply
of new intermediaries such as incubators, accelerators, and
technology hubs, amongst others, numbering more than 400
across Africa today. The digital economy in Africa is
expected to grow to over 300 billion dollars by 2025
(McKinsey 2013). Ghana has made substantial progress on
financial inclusion, due in large part to growth in DFS.
According to the World Bank’s Global Findex, the share of
Ghanaian adults (over 15 years of age) with a formal
financial account increased by 42 percent between 2014 and
2015. As a result, nearly 6 in 10 adults had formal access
in 2017. With mobile account ownership increasing by nearly
200 percent between 2014 and 2017, mobile money has become
the preferred payment alternative to cash when measured in
terms of transaction volumes. In May 2018, the Bank of Ghana
mandated that all mobile money providers connect to GHLink,
with full interoperability between mobile money providers
and banks introduced in December 2018. |
|---|