Ghana is this week crafting the most comprehensive national spectrum policy in its regulatory history, hosting five African countries and three regional bodies at a four-day international forum in Accra aimed at setting the direction for wireless communication management through 2036.
The National Communications Authority (NCA) began hosting the African Follow-Up Phase of the 7th Cohort of the Information and Communication Technology Policy and Regulation Institutional Strengthening (IPRIS) SPIDER Project on March 9, with deliberations running through March 12 at the Lancaster Hotel in Accra. The objective is to create a forward-looking framework that will guide spectrum allocation, licensing, and utilisation over the next five to ten years.
The forum arrives at a pivotal moment. Ghana’s government has announced plans to auction fifth-generation (5G) spectrum in the coming weeks, with a target of 70 percent population coverage by the country’s 70th independence anniversary in 2027. A well-structured national spectrum policy is seen as a prerequisite for that auction to proceed efficiently and equitably.
NCA Director General Rev. Ing. Edmund Yirenkyi Fianko framed the forum as a defining moment for the continent, not just for Ghana. “Across our continent, connectivity has evolved from a convenience into a fundamental enabler of development. It supports commerce, education, healthcare, governance, financial inclusion, and social interaction,” he said. “As regulators, we stand at the centre of efforts to bridge this divide.”
Fianko described spectrum as “the lifeblood of wireless communication” and said the NCA’s mandate extended well beyond licensing and compliance, encompassing equitable access, responsible stewardship of national resources, consumer protection, and the enabling of innovation. He said the NCA’s internal Change Initiative was already driving a comprehensive review of its spectrum management approach to make Ghana’s governance framework responsive to new technologies and rising data demand.
The IPRIS SPIDER project is funded by the European Union, Sweden, and Luxembourg and focuses on strengthening the regulatory capacity of national communications authorities across Sub-Saharan Africa, with participating countries spanning English, French, and Portuguese-speaking nations on the continent.
Speaking on behalf of the European Union (EU) Delegation to Ghana, Team Leader for Governance and Security Gisela Spreitzhofer said universal internet access had become an economic imperative. “Ensuring universal internet connectivity has become an imperative for most countries that are striving to compete in a globalised and digitalised world,” she said, referencing the EU’s Global Gateway Programme as a vehicle for digital infrastructure investment across partner countries.
Participants at the forum include regulators from Botswana, The Gambia, Kenya, Lesotho, and Malawi, alongside the Communications Regulators Association of Southern Africa (CRASA), the East African Communications Organisation (EACO), and the West Africa Telecommunications Regulators Assembly (WATRA). The forum concludes tomorrow, March 12.
