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Joshua Opoku Agyemang – inspiring a new generation of tech-savvy youth
“The fourth industrial revolution would bring a lot of changes where everything would become faster and smarter therefore we need to prepare the younger generation for a future which is yet to be created.”
These are the words of Joshua Opoku Agyemang, a young Ghanaian ‘Techpreneur’ who, together with his team, is helping nurture a new generation of young people to acquire the necessary skills to enable them make valuable contributions in the technology space and beyond.
Joshua is the Co-Founder and President of Internet of Things (IoT) Network Hub Africa, a non-governmental organisation with over 20,000 members and chapters in 20 African countries. It comprises innovators, scientists, technologists, engineers, educators, entrepreneurs, college professors, who are helping solve Africa’s “nagging problems” through technology innovations.
The 29-year-old in an interview with The Spectator says the organization, among other things, is focused on making Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education “practical and accessible” to every student across the country while helping them tap into opportunities in the fast-expanding sector of emerging technologies.
Emerging technologies relates to subjects such as Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality, Cryptocurrency, among others. The organisation has for the past six years been developing courses along these areas and continues to impact a number of the youth positively.
Background/Interest
Talking about his personal interest in technology, Joshua, described as a “Tech Progidy or IoT Evangelist,” said he was exposed to computers at a tender age while growing up at Kasapin in the Bono Region.
Born to well-educated parents, he started playing video games and doing other interesting activities with computers before entering Senior High School to study General Science.
“My first experience with computers felt magical so I developed an obsession for computers at the age of seven. My curiosity keep developing and I started doing a lot of things with computers.
ecosystem in Africa
“I took this same obsession to Mim Senior High School and in my final year, I took a computer to the boarding house and that is how it all started,” he recalled.
He admitted that his passion for computer technology affected his performance in the final examination as he had stopped attending class and rather spent more time with his PC in the dormitory. For this reason, he was unable to make the required grades to enter the university.
Training
In 2012, he relocated to Accra to pursue Diploma in Business Computing (Computer Programming) at the Ghana-Indian Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT (AITI-KACE) after which he decided to start his own company, Pesonet, to provide solutions and services in software development, computer networking, among others.
Joshua said he was fascinated by the wonderful depiction of science and technology in the movies he watched and wondered if black people could do same. But as time went on, he realised all of that was possible in here in Africa also.
This awareness and the desire to explore the many possibilities of science and technology, he explained, gave birth to the ‘IoT Hub’ so people with similar interests could join.
“After investing in a lot in research and development, we realised IoT was just a tip of the iceberg and we have to delve into how new techonogies that were shaping the world,” he added.
Support
The organisation, since its inception, whips up the interest of the youth in STEM education and continues to gain recognition for its work. In spite of challenges, the Founder said IoT Hub Africa was thriving on a number of partnerships and the voluntary support of members.
“For the past six years, we had to find ways to survive and keep things running. Our human resource has been our greatest asset. One of our biggest partner is STEM AID and Implementers (Ghana) that are helping push STEM education across the country,” he said.
He noted IoT Hub Africa was partnering these organisations which are building sixteen ICT Labs in all regions of the country in addition to training and providing educational content on ICT devices.
“IoT Hub Africa is also in partnership with the Ministry of Communication under the Kofi Annan ICT Centre where we are provided a space to organize our monthly programmes.
“This year we got final support from the Government of Ghana under the U-Start programme to train more young people and create more opportunities for the youth in the technology space,” he added.
Nonetheless, he said the organisation needed more support and resources to deliver on its quest to empower the next generation of tech-savvy young people and help them acquire employable skills.
Achievement
Among other accomplishments, Joshua was named among top 30 entrepreneurs in 2018 at the African Entrepreneurship Award. In 2019 he won the Ghana Open Data Initiative Hackathon.
In 2020, he and his team invented a smart veronica bucket, a 3D printed reusable face mask, an automated ventilator for supplying oxygen to COVID-19 patients.
These works got featured in 50 Innovations from Africa combating COVID-19 by United Nation Development Programme UNPD and in the ‘100 Inventions and ideas’ for COVID-19 in Africa by Forbes Africa in 2021.
Joshua is also the president of the Ghana STEM Network where he is mandated to ensure every student in the country have access to practical ICT education.
Family support
The smart and eloquent fellow said his parents, who had wanted him to become a teacher, now appreciate and understand what he does despite their initial reservations.
He maintains that “the only way to prepare young people for the future is to empower them with 21st century skills so they will be able to survive in any other world,” stressing that “the future is unknown and we need to be ready and prepared for the unknown future.”
By Ernest Nutsugah
The Global Network of Export-Import Banks and Development Finance Institutions (G-NEXID) successfully held its sixth (6th) Exchange Programme, hosted by the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) Bank in Accra from March 22 to 23 March.
The event brought together member institutions, partner organisations and Ghanaian public entities to advance dialogue on South-South trade, investment and development finance, while also creating opportunities for knowledge-sharing and institutional cooperation.
Organised as a capacity-building and networking platform, the 2026 edition of the G-NEXID Exchange focused on GEXIM’s experience in developing innovative solutions to promote intra-African and extra-African trade.
It also highlighted trade and investment opportunities in Ghana, particularly in the context of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and broader national development initiatives.
The Exchange Programme forms part of G-NEXID’s mandate to foster cooperation among export-import banks and development finance institutions in support of South-South trade and investment.
This 6th edition follows earlier successful programmes hosted by India Exim Bank (2016), BNDES (2017), Indonesia Eximbank (2018), Afreximbank (2019) and Saudi EXIM Bank (2025).
On the first day, participants were presented with G-NEXID institutional information and received an update on the Network’s 2026 work programme.
There were a series of substantive presentations, including an overview of the Ghanaian economy by the Ministry of Finance, with particular attention to debt-related challenges; a presentation by the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), on investment opportunities in the country; and institutional presentations by GEXIM and Development Bank Ghana (DBG) on their respective mandates, initiatives, products and services.
Discussions during the sessions underscored strong interest in sector-focused webinars and business dialogues, particularly in agribusiness value chains such as poultry and rice.
Participants also emphasized the importance of continued information exchange and the sharing of best practices, especially in the area of guarantees.
The second day opened with a presentation on the 24-Hour Economy and Accelerated Export Development Programme, a national economic transformation strategy launched by President John Dramani Mahama in July 2025.
The initiative aims to enhance economic productivity through continuous industrial activity, accelerated export development and strategic import substitution.
As the programme is expected to mobilise both private and development capital, it presents concrete opportunities for G-NEXID members in areas such as co-financing, guarantees, trade finance and technical cooperation.
The programme also featured institutional presentations by guest organisations, namely the African Guarantee and Economic Cooperation Fund (FAGACE) and the West African Development Bank (BOAD), which shared their mandates, initiatives, products and services.
Following these exchanges, the G-NEXID Secretariat held bilateral discussions with both institutions as part of the Network’s ongoing membership drive.
Participants further benefited from a presentation by the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB), as well as a showcase of GEXIM’s key pipeline projects.
On the margins of the Exchange Programme, G-NEXID members also held their 20th Annual General Assembly Meeting to review progress and discuss strategic priorities.
Following the event, participants joined the GEXIM@10 International Conference, held from March 24-25, 2026 under the theme, “A Decade of Enabling Export Trade and Industrial Transformation: Resetting GEXIM for the Next Frontier.”
The conference provided an important platform for exploring how Ghana can strengthen its transition from a primary commodity exporter to a more competitive player in value-added trade and industrial development.
Source – G-NEXID
President John Dramani Mahama on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, signed five bills including three amendment bills passed by Parliament into law.
They are: Security and Intelligence Agencies Bill, 2025; University of Engineering and Agricultural Sciences Bill, 2025; Ghana Deposit Protection (Amendment) Bill, 2025; Growth and Sustainability Levy (Amendment) Bill, 2026; and Education Regulatory Bodies (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
In a brief remark after assenting to the bills, President Mahama explained that the Security and Intelligence Agencies Act, 2026, scraps the Office of Minister of National Security and frees the President’s to appoint any Minister to supervise the security agencies.
He said it also reverses the name of the office of National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), to the original name, Bureau of National Intelligence, (BNI).
This the President said, addresses the confusion between that security agency and a well-known Ghanaian financial institution, the National Investment Bank.
President Mahama also noted that the University of Engineering and Agricultural Sciences Act, 2026, establishes another University in the Eastern Region, at Bonsu, with three campuses – the main campus at Bonsu in the Eastern Region, with the second campus to be cited at Ohawu in the Oti Region.
The third, the Presdient assed will be located at Acherensua in the Ahafo Region.
Touching on the Amendment to the Growth and Sustainability Levy Act, the President said, “As you’re aware, the act was amended to increase it from 1% to 3%, and so this act reduces it again. That is the levy on mining companies. It reduces it again to 1%, because of the introduction of the sliding scale of royalties.”
He also spoke to the passage of the Government Education Regulatory Bodies Amendment Act, emphasising that amends Act 1023 to grant greater flexibility to private tertiary institutions and the option to Charter.
The Ghana Deposit Protection Amendment Act, the President concluded, is an amendment to an original act that was supposed to guarantee deposits held in commercial banks or financial institutions.
It basically expands protection to include mobile money wallets and other digital platforms, ensuring a wider scope of digital financial assets are secured.
The signing ceremony, was witnessed by the Clerk of Parliament, Mr. Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, Secretary to the President, Dr Callistus Mahama, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Dr Dominic Akrutinga Ayine, Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, Joyce Bawa Mogtari, a Senior Presidential Advisor and a Special Aide to the President, Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, and the Vice President, Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang.
