Lawmaker Kwame Asare Obeng is using his visit to one of China’s most advanced automated ports to call on young women to pursue careers in science, artificial intelligence and engineering, arguing that the future of work will increasingly be shaped by technology.
Obeng, the Member of Parliament for Gomoa Central popularly known as A Plus, described China’s Port of Tianjin as a fully autonomous facility where trucks, cranes and robotic systems operate without human workers on the ground.
“There are just about 5 automated ports in the entire world,” Obeng wrote in a statement after touring the facility. “Everything looks alive and active like a normal busy port, except for one shocking thing: there are no humans anywhere.”
The Ghanaian legislator said the port uses AI-controlled autonomous trucks, robotic cranes and automated charging systems that allow machines to recharge themselves when batteries run low. He said the port handles more than 22 million containers annually and has not recorded a single accident.
The facility, often described as the world’s first “smart zero-carbon terminal,” is part of China’s broader push to digitize logistics and industrial infrastructure through automation and artificial intelligence.
According to him, he was granted rare access to the restricted facility through a Chinese engineer identified as Ms. Han, whom he credited with designing and manufacturing much of the port’s robotic and automation infrastructure. He added that the AI systems powering the operation were developed by her partner, Mr. He.
The lawmaker used the visit to encourage young Ghanaian women to challenge gender stereotypes that discourage them from entering science and technology fields.
“Do not allow anyone to convince you that science, engineering, robotics, AI, or technology are ‘for men only,’” he said.
A Plus urged girls not to abandon subjects such as physics, mathematics, engineering and coding because of social expectations.
“You can become one of the greatest scientists in the world,” Obeng said. “The future belongs to those who dare to be different.”
