The West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management (WAIFEM) and the Bank of Ghana (BoG) have called for stronger cybersecurity frameworks to safeguard the region’s financial systems as digital transformation accelerates across West Africa.
Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiama, Governor of the Bank of Ghana, has warned that the rapid growth of digital payment systems, fintech innovations, and mobile banking had increased Africa’s exposure to cyberattacks, data breaches, and fraud.
Delivering a speech on his behalf, Mr. Daniel Klu, Acting Head of Cyber and Information Security at the BoG, said while digital innovations were deepening financial inclusion and efficiency, they were also introducing new systemic risks.
“Cybersecurity must be treated as an enterprise-wide and whole-of-government issue,” Dr. Asiama stressed. “For central banks, where public trust is sacrosanct, the stakes are even higher.”
He noted that the World Economic Forum ranks cybercrime among the top five global risks by likelihood and impact, underscoring the urgency for West African nations to act decisively.
Citing Ghana’s e-Cedi pilot project, Dr. Asiama said it demonstrates how central banks can implement digital currency initiatives responsibly through a risk-based approach that prioritises interoperability, data security, and financial inclusion.
“A digital currency vulnerable to cyberattacks could undermine financial stability and erode public confidence, an outcome no central bank can afford,” he cautioned.
He called for deeper collaboration across the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to harmonise cyber laws, share intelligence, and build joint defences against cross-border threats.
“Cyber threats are borderless, and so must our defenses be,” Dr. Asiama said, urging regulators and financial institutions to coordinate through shared intelligence networks.
Dr. Baba Y. Musa, Director-General of WAIFEM, in a speech delivered on his behalf by Mr. Amadou Koom, Director of Financial Sector Management Systems, said the course was designed to help policymakers and regulators across the region strengthen resilience to cyber shocks.
He said cybersecurity had become a core determinant of financial stability, alongside traditional fiscal and monetary tools.
“The stability of our economies now depends not only on sound fiscal and monetary policies but also on how effectively we manage digital-age threats,” Dr. Musa observed.
WAIFEM, established by the central banks of Ghana, Gambia, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone, has in recent years expanded its focus to emerging areas such as digital finance and cybersecurity.
The institute aims to enhance the capacity of member countries to safeguard the integrity of digital financial systems.
Both the BoG Governor and WAIFEM Director-General emphasised that leadership and human capacity development are central to building cyber resilience. “The real test of leadership in the digital age,” Dr. Asiama remarked, “is not whether we can prevent all attacks, but whether we can anticipate, respond, and recover swiftly.”
Stakholders from the Bank of Ghana, Deloitte, and other partner institutions are expected to lead sessions on cybersecurity fundamentals, digital currency regulation, and cross-institutional cooperation.
