The Ministry of Information and the World Bank have commenced engagements aimed at improving development communications in Ghana.

The objective is to deepen the delivery of government information on development projects and public services using information and communication technologies.

Speaking at a maiden meeting, Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah asked the Bank to explore the extension of the ongoing e-transform project to accommodate proposed objectives.

The Minister said as part of efforts to step up government communication, it will be necessary to retool and enhance the capacities of the Information services department as well as the delivery unit of the ministry.

According to him, although the Information Services Department (ISD) has immense potential, years of neglect had left the department ineffective necessitating a revamping to enable it meet today’s challenges.

The leader of the World Bank delegation who is also a lead ICT Policy Specialist with the International Financial Institution, Dr. Tim Kelly praised Ghana’s cooperation for the e-transform project and pledged the Bank’s consideration of the Minister’s request.

He said the World Bank will carefully analyse the request by the Ministry of Information and provide the necessary partnership if possible.

E-transform Ghana

The development objective of the e -Transform Ghana Project is expected to be achieved through interventions which collectively are expected to improve targeting of government resources, leading to more efficient use of public funds.

It is also to help improve efficiency and coverage of priority government services, particularly in rural and underserved areas, and nurture entrepreneurship and increase jobs through ICT-enabled entrepreneurship.

The interventions include unique electronic identification systems, that validate citizens and confirms rights to public services while promoting better access to online transactions, financial and other services and innovative applications to improve service delivery in the priority areas of health, education, judicial, and parliamentary services.

The project is a joint collaboration between the Government of Ghana under the auspices of the Ministry of Communications and the World Bank.