The Minister of Communication, Digital Technology, and Innovations, Samuel Nartey George has said it is impossible to convince platforms like TikTok, PayPal and Meta to monetise content creation in Ghana as fraud and romance scam persists in Ghana.
Speaking to the media at the Ningo-Prampram Education Directorate during the Teachers Awards and Retirees Send-Off on December 12, 202, the Minister explained that one of the main causes of Ghana’s ongoing difficulties with platform monetisation is persistent fraud.
“I have seen a number of comments on social media saying that this is not what we voted for, you are going after the fraud boys, leaving them alone, you are not creating jobs but those same people are asking me to get PayPal to monetise, to get TikTok to monetise and Meta to monetise. Well, they will blacklist Ghana so long as there is fraud,” he said.
Sam George noted that fraud was the key reason PayPal exited Ghana several years ago, stressing that the problem has had long-term consequences for Ghana’s digital economy.
He said the Ministry will not give up on arresting cybercriminals because many Ghanaians who are lawfully employed online, particularly content creators, are being negatively impacted by the conduct of a small number of people.
“The reason PayPal left Ghana is because of fraud. When a few people deprive the majority who are doing legitimate work on social media and creating content, it affects everyone. The reason you cannot monetise and get value for your craft is because some individuals have chosen to give Ghana a bad name. We will take action,” he stated.
He added that clamping down on cybercrime improves Ghana’s international reputation and strengthens the country’s position when engaging digital platforms on monetisation.
I made a commitment when I became Minister that anything that we will do to clean up the image of Ghana internationally, we will do because as we clamp down on cybercrime, it makes our case stronger as we talk to platforms to monetise. It helps us present Ghana as a peaceful and safe destination and say illicit flows will not pass,” he added.
