The College of Basic and Applied Sciences (CBAS) of the University of Ghana, Legon warmly invites members of the University community to its twelfth in the Lecture Series which will be delivered by Hon. Dr. Albert Antwi-Boasiako, Ag. Director-General of the Cyber Security Authority. The lecture is scheduled as follows:
Date: Wednesday, 13th April, 2022
Time: 3:30 p.m.
Venue: Cedi Conference Centre, University of Ghana, Legon
Topic: Cybersecurity Imperatives For National Development And The Role Of The Academic Community
Abstract
In recent years, Ghana has experienced a rapid expansion of access to the internet. A report published by statista.com on 31st March 2022 indicates that, as of January 2022, the internet penetration rate in Ghana reached 53%, up from 50% in the same month in 2021. Ghana’s economy is largely digitalised but the digitalisation efforts cannot be sustained without cybersecurity. This is because according to the Global Risks Reports 2022, cybersecurity threats are growing; malware and ransomware attacks increased by 358% and 435% respectively in 2020 and are outpacing societies’ ability to effectively prevent or respond to them. Cybersecurity is therefore necessary to reduce the risk of cyberattacks and to protect institutions and the society from cyber harm.
Consequently, Ghana passed a new Cybersecurity Act (Act 1038) in 2020 and the President assented the Cybersecurity Act, 2020 (Act 1038) into law on December 29, 2020. In addition, Ghana has implemented a number of interventions which has raised the country’s cybersecurity readiness from 32.6% in 2017 to 86.69% in 2020, rating Ghana the 3rd on the African continent and 43rd globally, according to ITU’s latest Global Cybersecurity Index.
This lecture will examine the current cyber context of – both the domestic and international levels and will explore the various cybersecurity imperatives for Ghana’s developmental agenda. The lecture will highlight Ghana’s current developmental paradigm of which digitalisation is an integral component and will further explore the nexus between cyber resilience and Ghana’s future socio-economic development. Most importantly, the lecture will explore the role of the academia and research institutions in securing Ghana’s cyber future, including the protection of Critical Information Infrastructures.
Both the revised National Cybersecurity Policy & Strategy of Ghana as well as the newly passed Cybersecurity Act, 2020 will provide the framework for discussions and case studies during the lecture. Target participants are members of the academic and research community, industry representatives, government and civil society actors, journalists and students.
Profile of Dr Albert Antwi-Boasiako
Dr Albert Antwi-Boasiako, is the Acting Director-General of the Cyber Security Authority (CSA).
Prior to this appointment on October 1, 2021, he served as the National Cybersecurity Advisor and Head of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), leading Ghana’s institutionalisation of cybersecurity under the policy direction of the Ministry of Communications & Digitalisation, which is responsible for cybersecurity matters in government.
Dr Antwi-Boasiako has led the revision of Ghana’s National Cybersecurity Policy & Strategy (NCPS) and the development and passage of Ghana’s Cybersecurity Act, 2020 (Act 1038), two enabling interventions which constitute the anchors of Ghana’s cybersecurity development. In his role as Advisor to Government and the Head of the NCSC, Ghana acceded to the Convention on Cybercrime (Budapest Convention), ratified the African Union Convention on Cyber Security & Personal Data Protection (Malabo Convention), launched Ghana’s National Cybersecurity Awareness Programme (Safer Digital Ghana) and established Cybercrime and Cybersecurity Incident Reporting Points of Contact which has allowed the public to report cybercrime and cybersecurity incidents.
During his tenure as Cybersecurity Advisor, Ghana’s cybersecurity has improved on the ITU’s Global Cybersecurity Index from 32.6% in 2017 to 86.69% in 2021, with Ghana becoming the 3rd most ranked country on the African continent and a global ranking of 43rd from the previous 89th position. A position achieved through his leadership and the collective efforts of the then National Cyber Security Technical Working Group (NCSTWG), which was established in 2017 by the then Minister for Communications as part of the institutionalisation of Ghana’s cybersecurity architecture.
Dr Antwi-Boasiako previously served as a Cyber Security Expert with the Interpol Global Cybercrime Expert Group (IGCEG) and is an Expert with the Council of Europe’s Global Action on Cybercrime Extended (GLACY+) Project.
In 2011, he founded e-Crime Bureau, the first and an award-winning cybersecurity and digital forensics firm established and operated in West Africa. Dr. Albert completed his PhD studies at the University of Pretoria in South Africa, introducing the Harmonized Model for Digital Evidence Admissibility Assessment (HM-DEAA) as a ground-breaking contribution to digital forensics standardisation. The HM-DEAA has been adopted by the UNODC as part of its Education for Justice (E4J) Programme.
Dr. Albert graduated from the University of Trento in Italy and the University of Portsmouth in the United Kingdom where he did his undergraduate and postgraduate programmes respectively, receiving cum laude and distinction respectively. He has a number of publications covering information technology, cybersecurity, cybercrimes, data protection and digital forensics to his credit.
Dr Antwi-Boasiako has conducted cybersecurity related consulting and assignments for a number of international and local organizations including the United Nations Office on Drugs & Crime (UNODC), United Nations Conference on Trade & Development (UNCTAD), the European Union, Commonwealth Cybercrime Initiative (CCI) of the Commonwealth Secretariat, Global Commission on Internet Governance (GCIG)/Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) and the InterGovernmental Action Group against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA) among others.
Dr Antwi-Boasiako is an Adjunct Lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC). He is also a Faculty Member at the Ghana Police Command and Staff College (GPCSC).
Dr Antwi-Boasiako has received a number of awards and global recognitions. In June 2021, he was recognised as the world’s 20th most Influential Security Executive in the Cybersecurity Category by IFSEC Global, a respected industry body based in the United Kingdom.
He currently serves as the Government of Ghana’s representative on the Independent Advisory Committee (IAC) of the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT). He also serves as a Bureau Member of the Cybercrime Convention Committee (T-CY) and is the Government of Ghana’s representative on ECOWAS’ Regional Technical Committee (RTC) on Cybersecurity. Dr Antwi-Boasiako is a member of the Governing Boards of the Cyber Security Authority (CSA) and the National Information Technology Agency (NITA).
