Impact of New Communication Technologies An African Perspective

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Status of Information Delivery and Management in
Ghana, employing ICT
Felix Duku Head, ICT eBanking Ecobank Ghana Ltd
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Introduction

• Change is the only survival strategy. Were
  changing. What were going to look like in five
  years time, I have no idea but it wont be what
  we look like today

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• Information today has become the most critical
  factor in business
• Business success or failure is inexorably tied
  with ability to obtain information that is
• Timely
• Accurate
• Appropriate

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Caution!

• 40 of the fortune 500 companies of 1983 no
  longer exist
• 60 of the Fortune 500 companies of 1970 no
  longer exist
• Only 1 out of the 12 companies in the 1900 Dow
  Jones Index, still exists as a major company
  today!
• Due to lack of flexibility as a result of lack of
  access to information

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FACTS

• World has become a global village
• Effects of globalization on local businesses is
  becoming profound
• Ghanaian businesses need accurate information to
  be able to compete effectively with Global
  players

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Therefore?key questions

• What information do we need to function
  effectively as businesses to facilitate
• Strategy
• Effective Competition
• Internal efficiency
• Where can this information be found?
• How much does it cost to access the information?

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Current Situation (from a business perspective)

• Finding information of any sort both at the Macro
  level, and being able to generate the requisite
  information internally in most organizations
  today is a major challenge!!!!

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Eg. Of information required

• Investment opportunities, availability and spread
  of natural resources etc.
• Business rules
• Macro-economic indicators
• Legal procedures and framework
• Tax laws
• Credit rating agencies etc
• Census data
• UPDATED AND RELEVANT

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Internally, businesses need to

• Generate MIS information on profitability etc
• Human Resource Management
• Business Process Automation
• Generate Financial results real time
• Balance Sheet
• P L
• Cash Flow

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Where are we now?

• A great deal of effort Communication policy now
  in place, NCAA very active
• Results not very apparent to business
  institutions
• Information still extremely difficult to get
• (plethora of disjointed sources)
• Most organizations still grappling with basic
  information requirements.

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Thoughts on the way forward..

• Vision has to be clear and concise.
• Clearly identifiable institution tasked with
  responsibility for transforming Information
  Society Vision into reality
• Higher priority given to the provision of the
  relevant infrastructure, especially data
  communication infrastructure.
• A more coordinated plan for improving the Human
  resource capacity for technology
• Enhancing the regulatory framework, ensuring I.T.
  Governance is taken seriously
• Build alliances/bridges which will allow us to
  leapfrog intermediate technologies

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RISKS???

• If we dont get our act together, it will be
  increasingly difficult for the more advanced
  economies to do business with us at all levels in
  all sectors, or for us to even compete against
  the global players
• We will be outside the loop and will always play
  catchup!!

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Remember.

• 40 of the fortune 500 companies of 1983 no
  longer exist
• 60 of the Fortune 500 companies of 1970 no
  longer exist
• Only 1 out of the 12 companies in the 1900 Dow
  Jones Index, still exists as a major company
  today!
• We will not go that way if we strategize properly
  and are focused!!