Ghana is preparing two new bills that will bring artificial intelligence, deepfakes, automated decision-making, and cross-border data transfers under formal law for the first time, with Parliament’s Select Committee on Communications urging the government to move the legislation to the floor of the House without delay. Communications Minister Samuel Nartey George announced the measures at the 2026 Data Protection Conference in Accra on March 2, saying the objective was to modernise Ghana’s data protection regime in response to the growing deployment of AI across health, finance, telecommunications, and the public sector.
The first measure is a new Data Protection Bill to replace the existing Data Protection Act. It will specifically address AI systems, automated decision-making, deepfake technologies, cross-border data transfers, data harvesting by multinationals, and the regulatory gaps created by machine learning. The second is a separate Emerging Technologies Bill covering AI systems, advanced analytics, digital assets, and new digital platforms. A Data Harmonisation initiative is additionally underway to reduce regulatory fragmentation across financial services, telecommunications, and the public sector.
- Minister George said the legislation aims not to stifle innovation but to guide it responsibly.
- Data Protection Commission Executive Director Dr. Arnold Kavaarpuo said the new bill would specifically close gaps created by machine learning and deepfake technologies.
- Parliament’s ICT Select Committee Chairman Abednego Bandim Azumah called the legislation urgent, citing the need for laws covering AI, cyber threats, and data misuse by multinationals, with enforceable penalties.
- The DPC has signalled a shift from public education to active enforcement: Section 56 of the existing Data Protection Act already prescribes fines and imprisonment for organisations that have not registered under Section 27.
- Ghana’s Data Protection Week has been expanded into a month-long national programme to accelerate awareness ahead of stricter enforcement.
The urgency has a concrete human dimension. Dr. Kavaarpuo described at the conference the case of a Ghanaian teacher whose mobile loan default led to a lender accessing her contact list and circulating her personal information publicly. The incident illustrated how personal data shared under financial pressure can be weaponised, and why formal enforcement matters beyond compliance.
The legislative push runs in parallel with a planned nationwide SIM card re-registration exercise. Policy think tank IMANI Africa has demanded seven minimum legal safeguards before citizens submit biometric data again, citing failures in the 2022 registration to securely authenticate the biometrics of 30 million participants against National Identification Authority records. Those records remain inadequately secured.
Bigger Picture: Ghana is moving faster on AI and data governance than most African peers. Two bills rather than one signals that Accra understands the problem has two layers: protecting citizens from data exploitation now, and building the regulatory architecture for AI before the technology outpaces the law. The 30 million biometric records already at risk from the 2022 SIM exercise give this urgency a concrete face. For investors and operators in Ghana’s digital economy, the direction is clear: enforcement is coming, and the compliance window is narrowing.
Source: News Ghana
