Africa can accelerate its economic transformation by using artificial intelligence, digital services and other emerging technologies to bypass some of the traditional development pathways followed by advanced economies, President John Dramani Mahama has said.
Mahama said the continent’s large and youthful population, combined with unprecedented access to information and technology, gives Africa an opportunity to close development gaps more quickly than was possible in previous generations.
Speaking to Ghida Fakhry on TRT World’s Bigger Than Five, Mahama said Africa’s young population was increasingly unwilling to wait for the slow pace of economic and political integration that has characterised the continent’s development.
“Our young people are in a hurry,” he said.
Around 60% of Africa’s population is under the age of 25, according to Mahama, creating both pressure on governments to deliver jobs and opportunities and an opportunity to harness a large digitally connected population.
He said the difference between today’s young Africans and previous generations was the access they have to knowledge and technology, which could allow the continent to develop in ways that were previously difficult to imagine.
“The tools are there for Africa to leapfrog,” Mahama said.
He pointed to technology, digital services and particularly fintech as areas where African countries could move faster, noting that innovation is already changing the way financial services are delivered across the continent.
Ghana’s fintech sector, he said, is developing so rapidly that regulation is struggling to keep pace with new products and business models.
“The FinTech space is changing so much, regulation cannot even keep up,” Mahama said.
The comments come as African economies increasingly adopt digital payments, mobile financial services and technology-driven business models to expand access to services and overcome limitations in traditional infrastructure.
For Mahama, the opportunity extends beyond financial technology. Artificial intelligence could accelerate productivity, improve access to knowledge and create new opportunities for businesses and young people across the continent.
He said the speed of technological change means Africa does not necessarily have to reproduce every stage of development experienced by countries that industrialised earlier.
The technology agenda also fits into Mahama’s broader argument that Africa must pursue economic emancipation alongside greater continental integration and control over its natural resources.
He has argued that political independence alone has not delivered the economic independence envisioned by Africa’s founding leaders, leaving the continent vulnerable to external financing, commodity-price shocks and dependence on the export of raw materials.
Technology, in that context, could provide a route to faster economic transformation while allowing African countries to build new industries around digital services, innovation and knowledge.
Mahama said the continent’s young population is central to that opportunity, but warned that governments must create the conditions for young Africans to participate in the emerging economy.
With millions entering the labour market each year, the ability to turn technological innovation into productive employment will be critical to whether Africa can convert its demographic advantage into sustained economic growth.
For Ghana, Mahama said the government’s focus on digital services and fintech forms part of a wider effort to modernise the economy and position the country to benefit from technological change.
He said Africa now has access to tools that previous generations lacked and must use them to accelerate the continent’s development rather than wait for traditional models to deliver results.
The challenge, however, will be ensuring that technological progress is matched by appropriate regulation, infrastructure, digital skills and access so that the benefits of AI and emerging technologies extend beyond a relatively small segment of the population.
