Several thousand computers will be procured by the Government of Ghana in 2003 making it the single biggest purchaser of IT in the country.

In its effort to encourage the local assembly of PC’s, the Ministry of Communications & Technology will evaluate a number of products made by local manufacturers against a wide criteria to determine which represents best value for money.

Up to 15 PC assemblers will enter a business and a home computer each of similar specification in front of an independent panel of judges, brought together under the supervision of the Minister of Communications & Technology. The panel will score each competitor under a range of categories in front of an audience of scrutineers including ICT managers, professionals, educational institutions, other business users and consumers.

Participating companies will be awarded a Minister of Communications & Technology seal of approval and a certificate detailing the adjudicators score for their product. Government departments and procurement agencies will be encouraged to purchase products bearing the Minister of Communications & Technology seal.

Each entrant will have its product literature displayed during a Technology Week IT Forum Roadshow at Tamale, Kumasi and Cape Coast and will also have a trade stand at AITEC West Africa ’03, the Computing, Telecomms and Broadcasting Technologies Exhibition in May 2003.

The Ministry in conjunction with AITEC Ghana have been working together to encourage local assemblers to support this new enterprise.