The Ghana Chamber of Telecommunications (GCT) says the telecom operators in Ghana are proud of Ghana’s number one ranking in internets speed in Africa because they invested heavily to ensure that.

Ookla Netindex this year ranked Ghana’s 5.13 megabits/second internet speed 72nd in the world, which made Ghana number one in Africa, as the next African country on the list was Kenya at the 75th position with a speed of 4.49mbps.

Ghana was even one step ahead of Italy, which came 73rd. with a speed of 5.05mbps.

The report listed at least two telecom operators – Vodafone and MTN, plus one Internet Service Provider – Zipnet/Broadband Home Limited, as the networks with the highest speeds in Ghana.

Telecom Chamber CEO, Kwaku Sakyi-Addo told Adom News the telcos have invested heavily in 3G upgrades to deliver greater speeds, adding that the detail behind the figures shows vast improvements in the speed of internet cafes in Ghana, and competitive consumer broadband tariffs.

"All of these factors have led to our leading performance in Africa," he said.

He noted that Ghana’s ranking has been growing over the last 2 years, as the country came 157th two years ago but has lifted its game to the current position of 72nd in the world and first in Africa.

Mr. Sakyi-Addo said the members of the chamber have taken up the challenge to ensure the high speeds that most sites and applications require to work effectively, but in order for Ghana to sustain its performance in the global rankings, there is the need for a wider internet adoption in the country, stimulated by an environment that supports demand as well as supply. "I believe that together with the policy-makers, we're on the right track," he said.

"I believe that together with the policy-makers, we're on the right track."

“Our members have taken up that challenge and are conquering in Africa [and] as more people surf on the internet at home, at work or on their mobiles, we’ll see even further improvement in service and speed, and the industry will move to correspond with this demand,” Sakyi-Addo said.

Mr. Sakyi-Addo noted that broadband has become a tool for improving productivity and job creating jobs, and it also establishes an enabling environment for businesses and the government as a whole.

He noted that data penetration is expected to increase in the coming years, and assured Ghanaians that the telcos were investing substantially to cater for the expected demand.

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