Climax TV
MTN Ghana has launched the 2026 edition of DigiFest, a two-month programme designed to give young people, students and entrepreneurs direct access to industry players, hands-on training and real opportunities in the country’s growing digital economy.The launch, held at MTN House in Accra, opened alongside a three-day Digital Fair bringing together technology companies, startups, the University of Ghana and other partners to display digital solutions built for the Ghanaian market.
Speaking at the event, MTN Ghana Chief Executive Officer, Stephen Blewett, said the country already has the talent and ideas needed to build solutions that can serve not just Ghana, but the wider African and global markets. “We have highly educated people who have amazing ideas,” he said, adding that the task now is to move those ideas into the market.
Blewett said digital development must be judged by whether it solves real problems and improves the everyday experience of customers and called on stakeholders across the ecosystem to play their part in shaping Ghana’s digital future.
The Fair was formally opened by the Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Honorable Samuel Nartey George, marking the start of a programme that will run through October, making this year’s DigiFest almost twice as long as its maiden edition last year.
Chief Digital Officer of MTN Ghana, Ibrahim Misto, said the extended programme reflects the scale of activity planned this year, including a gaming conference, a UI/UX conference, an AI conference and a series of masterclasses aimed at building practical skills. “My ask to you is: travel to the future, bring one idea, and turn it into action,” Misto told participants at the launch.
He said DigiFest exists to move people from watching technology happen to shaping it themselves, and that innovation is not reserved for people in tech roles, it starts with identifying a problem and having the courage to act on it.
For small and medium-sized businesses, the programme includes masterclasses and capacity-building sessions designed to help entrepreneurs sharpen digital skills and build capacity within the ecosystem they operate in.
A central highlight of the programme will be the grand finale of the MTN-University of Ghana AI Hackathon, which brings students and developers together to build practical, local-language solutions, including tools aimed at supporting farmers and improving healthcare delivery.
Over the coming weeks, DigiFest will run panel discussions, conferences, workshops, focus groups and immersive experiences covering areas such as gaming, artificial intelligence and UI/UX (User Interface and User Experience) design, giving participants the chance to engage directly with industry practitioners, partners and potential collaborators.
MTN Ghana says the initiative sits at the centre of its digital transformation strategy, which is focused on using digital services to improve the everyday lives of customers while strengthening the pipeline of local talent feeding Ghana’s technology sector.
As DigiFest runs into October, MTN Ghana’s focus will remain on connecting people, ideas and technology to build solutions that respond directly to the needs of Ghanaians and contribute to the country’s digital economy.
