BoG Governor rallies IMF to back Africa’s digital sovereignty

Dr Johnson Asiama, Governor of the Bank of Ghana, has urged the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to support Africa’s growth by helping the continent to take control of its digital future and use artificial intelligence (AI) responsibly. 

Governor Asiama made the call at the Second-Round Governors’ Intervention meeting in Bangkok on the margins of the 2026 International Monetary Fund (IMF)/World Bank Group (WBG) annual meetings in Bangkok, Thailand. 

He noted that without urgent coordinated action and stronger partnership with the Fund, the continent’s transformation, economic resilience, and long-term development risked falling further behind in the global technology race. 

The Governor, speaking on behalf of fellow African Governors during African Caucus Meeting with the IMF Managing Director, said AI is already reshaping productivity, competitiveness, governance and finance. 

He cited Africa’s progress in digital payments, national IDs and AI-powered fintech, including Ghana’s cross-border tests, linking digital currencies, stablecoins, bank accounts and mobile wallets with Rwanda and Nigeria. 

“Africa has taken giant leaps in digital payments, ID systems, AI-enabled financial services, and fintech” he said, highlighting gaps in regulatory capacity, cybersecurity, infrastructure, and financing. 

He called for IMF’s assistance in capacity building, governance and analytical leadership to amplify Africa’s digital voice, improve standards, and integrate AI into surveillance and affordable infrastructure. 

Dr Asiama said the convergence of AI, data and finance was now at the heart of macro-financial stability, therefore, the Fund must treat Africa’s digital agenda as a core economic resilience issue, not a peripheral technology concern. 

“We first call upon the Fund to scale up tailored capacity development and to support a stronger Africa’s voice in shaping global digital norms,” he noted. 

He also urged the IMF to lead on AI and financial stability, integrate AI into surveillance and the Financial Sector Assessment Programme (FSAPs), and support digital infrastructure and data governance. 

THE Governor said it was important to deepen analysis on how AI affected productivity, employment, financial resilience and inclusive growth in Africa, while promoting global policy coherence on data governance, digital trade and cross-border AI regulation. 

Such interventions, he noted, would enable Africa to harness and adapt to AI, govern and innovate with it for inclusive growth, job creation and improved public service delivery. 

Going forward, he called on the Fund to help mobilise affordable financing for secure digital public infrastructure, urging coordinated action by African governments to work towards addressing the constraints for safe and inclusive use of such technologies. 

At a different engagement, Dr Asiama disclosed Ghana’s pilot of central bank digital cross-border payment systems to include mobile money, building on existing infrastructure like PAPSS, to reduce costs and improved in trade. 

“The future of African payments will not be defined by a single technology, and central banks should not determine which technology succeeds. Our role is to ensure that emerging systems are safe, efficient, resilient and inclusive,” he said. 

Kristalina Georgieva, Head of the IMF, reaffirmed the Fund’s commitment to supporting its African members as they strengthen resilience to an increasingly shock-prone global environment through tailored policy advice, capacity development. 

She noted that, where needed, the Fund would also provide financing, support efforts to rebuild policy buffers, protect vulnerable populations, and advance resilient, inclusive, and job-rich growth across the continent.

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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.