Bank of Ghana (BoG) Governor Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiama performed the ceremonial tee-off at the 3i Africa Invitational Golf Tournament at Achimota Golf Club on Tuesday 5 May 2026, formally opening the week of activities that leads into Africa’s flagship digital finance gathering.
The tournament drew senior figures from across Ghana’s financial and policy community, with dignitaries including Sports Minister Kofi Adams and Ghana Golf Association President Leonard Kwaku Okyere joining Governor Asiama for the opening, alongside executives from the Bank of Ghana, Achimota Golf Club and the Venture Capital Trust Fund.
More than 120 amateur golfers from Ghana and other African countries competed across multiple categories in an 18-hole contest, with organisers framing the invitational as a strategic networking platform designed to bring together policymakers, corporate executives, investors and innovators in an informal environment ahead of the main conference.
The tournament serves as the curtain-raiser to the 3i Africa Summit 2026, which runs from 6 to 8 May at Destiny Arena in Accra under the theme “Shaping Africa’s Integrated FinTech Future.” The summit is co-hosted by the Bank of Ghana, the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS) and the Global Finance and Technology Network (GFTN).
Asiama has consistently framed the summit as a moment for Africa to shift from building foundational financial systems to scaling the value those systems generate. Throughout the 3i Africa Summit’s launch activities over recent weeks, he has emphasised that the continent’s challenge is no longer innovation itself but the ability to translate it into structured financial platforms that can operate across markets and reach underserved populations.
The inaugural 3i Africa Summit, held in 2024, convened more than 8,000 participants including 13 central bank governors from 10 African countries and three heads of state, establishing it as a significant platform for continental dialogue on digital finance policy and investment.
The 2026 edition focuses on integration across systems, markets and regulatory frameworks, with a particular emphasis on cross-border fintech activity, digital identity infrastructure and support for indigenous African financial technology firms. Asiama has argued that these areas represent the next layer of work required to convert the continent’s digital finance progress into measurable economic outcomes for businesses and households.
The golf invitational, positioned at the intersection of sport and strategy, gave participants from across the financial services, technology and investment sectors an informal setting to initiate partnerships before the formal policy and business sessions begin at Destiny Arena.
