AmCham Ghana And U.S. Embassy Engage Stakeholders On AI Opportunities For Innovation

The American Chamber of Commerce, Ghana, and the U.S. Embassy in Ghana on Tuesday, April 4, 2023, jointly hosted the AI Forum on “Leveraging Artificial Intelligence for Innovation” at the Google AI Research Center in Accra.

The event focused on developments in industry, research, and policy related to artificial intelligence.

More than 40 local and international ICT companies, including AmCham Ghana member companies, startups, incubators, academic experts, industry representatives from agriculture, food processing, and manufacturing, as well as graduate students in computer science, NGOs, and civil society representatives, attended the event.

Officials from the Office of the President of Ghana and the National Data Commission were also in attendance.

“U.S. companies and organizations, like those represented here today, are at the forefront of this technology. The responsible use of these technologies has the potential to transform our economy and drive Ghana’s digital transformation,” said U.S. Ambassador Palmer.

The Ambassador highlighted AI tools being deployed around the world to enhance capacities and improve efficiencies in nearly all industry and social sectors, from health to transportation to agriculture and food security.

The United States Government is working to build partnerships connected by shared values and a shared commitment to the responsible use of AI.

Dr. Jason Hickey, Head of Google’s AI Research Center, highlighted Google’s research activities, many of which involve local researchers who are developing AI solutions for use within Ghana and the wider African continent.

Ludwika Alvarez, Digital Team Leader for AI at the U.S. Department of Commerce, provided an overview of fast-moving investment and expansion efforts in the AI industry in the United States.

Fatima Tajambang of the U.S. company Nvidia explained how the company is providing Ghanaian ICT communities with mentoring and computing resources so that aspiring local developers can build and scale their AI expertise, nurture emerging technologies and drive innovation.

Dr. Daphne Stavroula Zois from the University of Albany (New York) detailed her research on AI applications for use in Ghana’s agricultural sector.

Darlington Akogo from KaroAgroAI, which is partially funded by several American foundations, spoke about his active work using AI to diagnose plant diseases and provide solutions for Ghana’s farmers.

Dr. Peter Maher from Webster University in St. Louis, Missouri, highlighted how U.S. education is responding to the AI sector’s fast growth, including developing specialized curricula to train the researchers and workers who will work with the technology in a wide range of disciplines.

For more information on the United States National Artificial Intelligence Strategy, see www.ai.gov.

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U.S. Launches SelectUSA Summit Recruitment for Ghanaian Investors

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The U.S. Embassy joined the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Ghana yesterday to launch the 2023 SelectUSA Summit recruiting program.  The event attracted Ghanaian companies and individuals from a variety of economic sectors to highlight the benefits of investing in the United States.  In its 2022 report, Kearney Global Business Policy Council ranked the United States as the number one global destination for future Foreign Direct Investment for the tenth consecutive year.

“Our economic engagement with Ghana continues to grow.  One of our top priorities is to expand bilateral investment, not only into Ghana but into the United States as well,” explained U.S. Embassy Economic Section Chief Stephanie Hutchison at the event.  Ghanaian investments can help drive more exports of key locally sourced goods from Ghana to the United States.  She further explained that “investing in the United States can help Ghanaian companies diversify the goods and services that they provide and build their brand internationally.”

Hutchison highlighted the United States’ strong culture of innovation, as well as its business environment, labor force, diversity of industries, and lucrative domestic consumer market in her remarks.  The United States remains the largest recipient of inward foreign direct investment in the world with $5 trillion in cumulative investment at the end of 2021.

The event featured speakers from the U.S. Embassy, the American Chamber of Commerce, the Department of Commerce’s SelectUSA program, as well as from Ghanaian companies Ekumfi Fruits and Anning Bonsu Enterprises.

Acting Commercial Counselor Laurie Kelleher explained U.S. Government resources available to investors, including specific ways the SelectUSA Program can assist potential investors to identify opportunities and partners, find state and local resources, and navigate company registration and other investment processes.  She highlighted the benefits of attending the SelectUSA Investment Summit, the premier annual event dedicated to promoting investment into the United States.  SelectUSA attendees can participate in more than 100 dedicated sessions featuring C-Suite Executives, Cabinet Officials, U.S. Governors, and U.S. Economic Development Organizations from 51 U.S. States and Territories in one location. The 2022 SelectUSA Summit, the largest to date, attracted 3,000 attendees, including 1,400 companies from 70 foreign countries.

Dr. Obafemi Elegbede from SelectUSA described how to select a location for a business, register a company, and open a bank account in the United States. Other local speakers highlighted their experiences in the U.S. market, including the strong affinity for Ghana and Ghanaian products in the United States and complementary industries such as food processing, logistics, energy, software and IT services, and tourism, among others.

The Commercial Section of the U.S. Embassy will lead the Ghanaian delegation to the SelectUSA Summit, which will be held on May 1-4, 2023 in Washington, DC.  For more information about attending the SelectUSA Investment Summit, the SelectUSA Program, and investing in the United States, please visit the U.S. Embassy website section for businesses and investors: https://gh.usembassy.gov/business/getting-started-usa/