Communication Minister, Hon. Samuel Nartey George, has dismissed suggestions that the government intends to regulate social media through the new anti-misinformation bill currently being prepared by his ministry.
He explained that the legislation under development is aimed at tackling misinformation, disinformation, hate speech, and other incidental speeches across both traditional and digital platforms, and not about censorship.
“At no point in time have we said we want to regulate social media. We simply said that the fact that you use new media for broadcast does not put you above the ethics of the broadcast journalist. You must hold yourselves to the same standards that traditional media hold”
Hon. Samuel Nartey George, Minister for Communications, Digital Technology
The Minister emphasised that the proposal seeks to establish a framework that encourages self-regulation among content creators while setting professional benchmarks for all forms of media. “This is not just going to regulate social media,” he said.
According to Hon. George, the legal drafting of the bill has already been completed, with the next step being a wide stakeholder consultation process before it is submitted to Cabinet and subsequently laid before Parliament.
“We’re going to start the stakeholder engagements very soon, because the law itself has been crafted, and the legal work has been finished,” he revealed, pointing out that the misinformation bill is one of several major legislative initiatives being spearheaded by the Communication Ministry.
“We’re working on 15 different pieces of legislation at the ministry. As we speak, part of my team is up in the north on the innovation and startup bill to regulate the innovation and startup space in our country and be able to attract proper VCs”
Hon. Samuel Nartey George, Minister of Communication
Hon. George further highlighted efforts by his ministry to support Ghanaian content creators, saying such initiatives are central to the government’s broader digital agenda. He revealed that meetings with multiple associations of bloggers have been focused on TikTok.
“We’re getting TikTok to, for the first time on the continent, fly in a team to come and help our content creators do capacity building to improve their monetisation,” he disclosed. He also revealed that a partnership is being set up with GCB Bank to create a new payment system for digital creators, which would serve as an alternative to PayPal, whose services remain unavailable in Ghana.
DStv and Market Size Claims
The Communication Minister also addressed the recent controversy surrounding subscription costs for DStv in Ghana. Speaking on the new concessions the government secured with MultiChoice, he dismissed arguments that high rates were due to Ghana’s population size relative to other markets in Africa.
“It’s not an issue of just market sizes, because if it was an issue of market sizes, people should check how much Liberia is paying.
“Liberia has a population of five million people. That’s the population of Accra. Before we got this intervention, Liberia was paying less than us. Angola has a similar population to Ghana, about 33 million people. Angola was paying about $30 in the region”
Hon. Samuel Nartey George, Minister of Communication
He described the widely circulated claims comparing Nigeria’s low subscription rates to Ghana’s as misleading, calling those who argue that Nigeria’s price is low simply because of its population uninformed. He accused them of not properly following through with the conversation.
“They’re speaking from sentiment, and what they have heard people say on social media. They’re not speaking from fact. Speaking from fact, it will tell you that population does not necessarily play a role in the pricing model that has been done. Because if population plays a role, Liberia should not be charging less than Ghana”
Hon. Samuel Nartey George, Minister of Communication
Hon. George highlighted that his ministry had reached an agreement with MultiChoice Africa that would deliver unprecedented value for Ghanaian subscribers starting October 1. He stressed that the arrangement would see DStv customers enjoy between 33 percent and 50 percent more services depending on their subscription package.
“This new arrangement means Ghanaians will get more services for less,” he repeated the famous words from his press briefing in Accra.
“It is a commitment by MultiChoice to respond to the concerns of subscribers in Ghana, and the offer is unmatched anywhere else in Africa,” he added.
The Minister stressed that the government’s position on both misinformation and media regulation, as well as consumer protection in broadcasting, remains guided by transparency, fairness, and the promotion of Ghanaian interests.
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