MTN Ghana has launched the 2026 edition of its DigiFest, a month-long digital innovation festival aimed at bringing together technology companies, start-ups, academia, customers and other ecosystem players to explore emerging technologies and develop practical solutions to local challenges.
The festival, which builds on last year's maiden edition, will run through September and into October 2026 and feature a series of conferences, workshops, masterclasses, focus-group discussions, immersive experiences, trade visits and technology showcases.
Speaking to the media after the launch, MTN Ghana's Chief Digital Officer, Ibrahim Misto, said the festival was designed to strengthen collaboration across Ghana's digital ecosystem while creating solutions that improve customers' experiences.
We are showing the latest innovations, not only of MTN but also with our partners. We have the University of Ghana, startups and other technology companies, and we are orchestrating all these digital innovations around and trying to see how we can add value and benefits to our customers throughout their digital experiences,” he said.
Misto said this year's DigiFest would run for almost two months because of the expanded programme, which includes a gaming conference, a UX conference and an artificial intelligence hackathon being organised in partnership with the University of Ghana.
He explained that the festival formed part of MTN Ghana's broader digital transformation agenda, particularly its efforts to develop services and solutions that respond to real customer needs.
It fits actually at the heart of that. We are trying to delight our customers with more digital services and make their lives much brighter. Digital services, digital transformation and solutions fit at the core of that,” he said.
According to him, innovation must go beyond showcasing technology to addressing practical challenges faced by people and businesses.
He cited MTN's partnership with the University of Ghana on an AI hackathon as an example, noting that the initiative would explore practical artificial intelligence applications, including solutions for farmers and industries and the use of local languages.
“Innovation comes actually to address the needs and pain points that customers have” Misto noted.
He said the Digifest will afford entrepreneurs, students, technology companies and other participants would have opportunities to acquire skills, exchange ideas and develop solutions that could strengthen Ghana's digital ecosystem.
MTN targets locally developed digital solutions
MTN Ghana Chief Executive Officer, Stephen Blewett, earlier said the rapid pace of digital transformation made it difficult to predict the needs of customers even a decade into the future.
Reflecting on Ghana's technological development since MTN began operations in the country in 1996, Blewett said the scale of transformation had been significant.
In 1996, there was no DigiFest. There was no mobile money. There was no data. Halls were rare. There was no even smartphone. Internet was very slow,” he recounted.
He noted that technologies such as artificial intelligence, fintech, cloud computing and advanced connectivity were now reshaping how people lived, worked and interacted with businesses.
However, he said the challenge was not merely to develop new technologies but to ensure that those technologies solved genuine problems.
The point of digital evolution is not to find solutions that people didn't want. A lot of times people come up with solutions that don't do anything. We really need to find solutions for real-world problems,” Blewett stressed.
He urged Ghanaian innovators and technology companies to move beyond developing ideas and focus on taking viable solutions to the market.
We as Ghanaians are perfectly situated to be the breakout for the country and for the region, for the continent, of these digital solutions,” he said.
Blewett said Ghana had a strong pool of educated and innovative people capable of developing solutions for both the local and international markets, but greater collaboration was needed to commercialise those ideas.
He also called on stakeholders to take ownership of Ghana's digital future.
Are you prepared to step out and be part of putting Ghana at the centre of what happens in the digital space? I can speak on behalf of MTN Ghana and I can speak on behalf of myself. We are ready and we are already doing that. We are asking everybody else to put their hands up and say, ‘I'm part of Ghana's digital future,’” he urged.
Focus on digital financial services
The festival is also expected to highlight the role of digital technology in expanding financial services through mobile money and other fintech solutions.
Abdul Razak Issaka-Ali, Chief Commercial Operations Officer, MobileMoney Fintech Ltd, speaking on the role of digital innovation in mobile money, said technology must ultimately be used to solve customers' financial challenges.
He said MTN's mobile money platform had evolved from a basic money-transfer service into a broader financial ecosystem, with opportunities for partnerships with banks, insurers, bill-payment providers and other businesses.
He stressed the importance of using technologies such as artificial intelligence and application programming interfaces (APIs) to improve customer experiences and combat fraud.
We cannot achieve that without digital and innovation. For us, the first question is: how do you solve for the customer?” he said.
He added that the mobile money platform would increasingly serve as a platform through which partners could offer additional services to customers.
MTN targets smarter connected homes
The DigiFest programme will also showcase innovations aimed at transforming the home into a more connected and intelligent environment.
Dorinda Bruce-Acquah, Senior Manager for Home Commercial and Business Development at MTN Ghana, on her part said changing lifestyles and technological advancement were redefining the role of the home.
She said homes were increasingly becoming places where people worked, studied, conducted businesses, entertained themselves and accessed digital services.
What we are seeing is multiple devices and multiple activities happening in the home. And that means connectivity in the home is the foundation to support today's needs and tomorrow's innovations,” she said.
She said MTN was investing in technologies that could make homes safer, smarter and more productive, including smart devices, streaming services and home-security solutions.
According to her, MTN expects to connect about 700,000 additional homes by the end of the year as part of its efforts to expand home connectivity.
She encouraged innovators and technology companies to engage with MTN and develop solutions capable of improving everyday life.
The 2026 DigiFest is expected to provide a platform for MTN, its customers, technology partners, universities and start-ups to co-create solutions while building digital skills and strengthening Ghana's position within the continent's digital economy.
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