Microsoft Ghana has signed an agreement with the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) and the Global Alliance of Mayors to make Accra the first centre of excellence in Africa through Microsoft’s CityNext applications.

According to the Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Alfred Oko Vanderpuije, the partnership with Microsoft Ghana is a perfect example of how private partnerships can help shape Africa’s development.

“Our collaboration is an excellent example of how private partnerships can help shape Africa’s development, and we believe that Accra’s example will motivate cities all over Africa and the world to emulate our example. This will see the city become healthier, safer and more modern,” Mr Vanderpuije stated.

The Microsoft CityNext applications utilise the power of Microsoft’s Cloud, Big Data, mobile and social technologies to put the people of a city first – harnessing their ideas, energy and expertise to create a healthy, safe and sustainable place to live.

“Cities and their people are the hearts and souls of our nations. Ghana’s urbanisation rate matches that of the world’s, with over 50 percent of the population living in urban areas. This presents opportunities for modernising aging infrastructure and meeting the demands for natural resources from leveraging massive amounts of data from devices to improving the health and safety of citizens,” Country Manager for Microsoft Ghana, Derek Appiah said.

Under the partnership, Microsoft will be providing an enabling cloud computing platform for the AMA and a number of groundbreaking applications for Accra.

These include full evaluation of TeleHealth for Accra to seek ways in which technology can play the most impactful role in the remote provision of clinical services.

Additionally, a comprehensive e-Skills and Digital Literacy Programme will be delivered to facilitate digital readiness skills.

Technical guidance will also be provided to help Accra accelerate its cloud computing solutions as part of its e-citizen initiative to support the e-health programme.

“The goal of the partnership is to drive both the adoption and success of this Centre of Excellence in Accra, and then to use it as a case study to foster the development of other centres in the region and across the Global Alliance of Mayors,” Djibril Diallo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for African Renaissance & Diaspora Network added.