Officials of the cyber security institutions of the three countries made the call on the sidelines of the African Union (AU) - Global Forum on Cyber Expertise (GFCE) Africa Cyber Experts Kick-Off Meeting held in March 2022 in Accra.

It was part of efforts to improve bilateral relations with Ghana.

In a release issued by the authority last Monday, it said “within the last five years, Ghana has taken progressive steps towards the development of cyber security in the country, and these include the ratification of international treaties like the Convention on Cybercrime also known as the Budapest Convention and the African Union Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection also known as the Malabo convention.

Ghana has also ensured the institutionalisation of cyber security to foster regional cooperation through the adoption of the ECOWAS Regional Cybersecurity Cybercrime Strategy and the Regional Critical Infrastructure (CII) Protection Policy to strengthen Ghana’s international response in fighting cybercrime and to improve on cybersecurity.”

It said recognising these and other initiatives, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in its 2020 Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI), rated Ghana’s Cybersecurity development at 86.69 per cent, a major progress from previous ratings in 2017 which was 32.6 per cent.

“The ratings place Ghana 3rd on the African continent and 43rd globally; a development that has positioned Ghana as a leader in cybersecurity on the continent and hence a model for other African countries to learn from,” the release added.

The Ag. Director-General of the CSA, Dr Albert Antwi-Boasiako, who compared the visits to Ghana’s post-independence era, indicated that, Ghana’s modest but significant cybersecurity development will be meaningless if other African countries do not develop along the same line. This is because nations are interconnected and cyber insecurity in one country could have a real impact on another country.

The CSA, he said, is ready to collaborate and also to learn from other African countries to develop critical areas such as awareness creation, home-grown capacity building and the protection of critical information infrastructure.

He said CSA’s mandate on international cooperation is provided under Section 83 of the Cybersecurity Act, 2020 (Act 1038), adding that cyber is a global commodity and thus cybercrime can only be combatted through effective international collaborations.

Dr Antwi-Boasiako expressed his appreciation to the delegation for their visit and assured them of CSA’s commitment to collaborate and achieve a truly secured and resilient digital Africa.