Ghana has moved from AI policy declarations to hands-on implementation, hosting senior public sector officials at a dedicated national training programme in Akuse designed to equip government institutions with practical tools for deploying artificial intelligence in governance, agricultural planning and trade facilitation.The National AI Expert Training Programme, Akuse Edition, was organised by the Ministry of Communications, Digital Technology and Innovations in collaboration with the AiAfrica Project and Knowledge Web Center Limited. It shifts focus from basic AI awareness to operational deployment, enabling participants to apply AI directly within their institutions for measurable public value.

Speaking at the programme, 24-Hour Economy Authority Administrator Louis Quarcoo, representing Presidential Adviser Augustus Tanoh, framed artificial intelligence as a practical governance enabler rather than a transformative abstraction. He told participants that AI is a set of tools that allows institutions to think more clearly, act more coherently and respond more effectively to real-world challenges, and that it is not a substitute for human capability.

Officials said the technology will be applied in agricultural planning, including irrigation management and yield modelling to reduce post-harvest losses, as well as in logistics coordination, trade facilitation and customs processing to ease the movement of goods within domestic and regional markets.

Participants at the programme will deploy tailored AI tools including a supply chain copilot for mapping public sector value chains, an employment intelligence tool and a fiscal management application. The Akuse edition builds on earlier training of over 70 officers from Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), and draws on AiAfrica’s track record of training 2.4 million Africans since 2024 with a target of 11 million by 2030. Ghana currently leads the continent in certified AI experts under the AiAfrica framework.

President Mahama issued a directive requiring all government agencies to integrate AI tools into public sector operations during 2026, and an Emerging Technologies Bill covering AI, blockchain and robotics is currently in draft form to establish ethical and data governance standards. The Akuse programme represents the on-the-ground delivery arm of that policy framework.