Ghana: Okyeame Kwame, Sadiq Abdulai Abu to speak at digitisation event

They will be joined by other industry players including entertainment blogger Ameyaw Debrah, fashion designer Mabel Simpson and filmmaker Ivan Quashigah.

The conference will be broadcast on TV3 starting at 6pm CAT. The forum is organised by local news publication Graphic Showbiz, and will run under the theme, Maximising Benefits of Digitisation in the COVID-19 Era. The event will take stock of the progress in the country’s creative industry amid the global pandemic as well as how various stakeholders can harness digital options to attain benefits.

Since the onset of the pandemic last year. The health crisis has occasioned various restrictions, including limited social gatherings that have led to a heavy reliance on digital formats by various industries in an attempt to stay afloat. Many sectors such as the arts, entertainment and hospitality industries are yet to begin the road to recovery.

“While its benefits are numerous, many in the creative sector are yet to fully tap into it,” Graphic Showbiz said.

The guests are expected to share their experiences and provide insight about the tools available for creatives to fully explore the potential of digitisation and find innovative solutions for the damage caused by COVID-19.

Speaking to Music In Africa, Abu said: “One of the things I will be exploring as a member of the panel will be the new normal, which refers to the use of digital media and technology to enhance creative content consumption and leverage it to really impact the industry.

“When COVID hit, we were one of the worst affected sectors. However, our innovation and some of the moves that were taken during the period really contributed to an uptake in other areas. For instance, we know that data consumption did go up about 50%, but most importantly, we haven’t seen that level of uptake in the creative industry. So, one of the things we’re looking to do is to really explore what we've been compelled to do and what will stay and become the holding force of the industry.”

Abu's outfit has served as a pioneering force for the event’s previous two editions. Last week, he was named on rating and public relations agency Avance Media’s 2021 list of the Top 50 Young CEOs in Ghana alongside musicians including Sarkodie, Stonebwoy, D-Black and Joe Mettle.