Coronavirus and the awareness of digital transformation in Ghana

I write to enlighten how the COVD-19 outbreak has injected the awareness of the government initiative of digital transformation in the country. The rate of acceptance was moving at a slower pace. However, the emergence of the pandemic did influence the perception of Ghanaians.

It has never been imagined that people will remain indoors and abandon all-forms of activities. Just as the situation worsens, no one could sincerely predict when the pandemic would fade into the sunset as millions of jobs are lost in the country. As the saying goes, nothing happens without reason. The government has been creating awareness of the need to go digital, but the message remains fruitless. However, the government digitalization agenda has begun to awake. The pandemic has been the brain behind this intervention, creating more job opportunities for youth in all sectors of the economy and promoting social ties.

The education sector has been a living testimony. When the government announced a lockdown, many unemployed graduates waiting for government posting, which has remained a myth, took advantage of the situation, and advertising on their blog ‘Call for home tuition’ attracted many parents who do not want their children to sit idle to opt for home tuition. This has attracted employment for most graduates, and the child at the early stage has developed an interest in online learning.

Furthermore, viewing it with an economic lens, the online shop was only known to a few companies like MacDonald, Accra Mall, and some shopping centers, but as the quarantine became intense, it served as a job booster and eliminated the assumption that securing a job was based on whom you know. Many individuals start to market online, and their customers had to receive a phone call or text message to receive their products conveniently. Also, even rural folks have taken advantage of the situation to increase their client and market their income-generating activities.

The digital transformation gradually makes our banks graveyards as people feel safe to use their digital phones for business transactions. People no longer need to queue at the bus stations for Bus since they have online drivers like Uber, Bolt, Dropyn etc.

The entertainment industry cannot be left out. All the clubs, theatres were closed, and no place to relax after a day’s work. The youth who were smart enough did not fold their arms, waiting for life to come back to normalcy but took comparative advantage of the platform acting comedy and download on their platform to make people reduce stress after a day’s work. It is shocking to reveal that most of these people have millions of followers within this limited time and profit.

The advent of COVID-19 has smoothened the government digitization program. It has created an equitable platform for job opportunities, exposing the ordinary Ghanaian to the use and importance of digital transformation, enhancing the economy, and ensuring a robust and corrupt-free society.