Marginalisation of Older Adults in the Digitalisation Drive in Ghana

Abstract

The past decade has witnessed an overwhelming digital wave, with the Internet and associated information communication technologies (ICT) permeating every facet of life. This has had governments implement digitalisation agendas to provide their services online. However, although globally, the number of Internet and ICT users have increased tremendously, there continues to persist a digital divide in access and use of these ICT and related technologies. One such divide is generational, prevailing among younger and older adults. This chapter examines such a divide within the Ghanaian context. The chapter analyses Ghana's digitalising attempts and the positioning of adult learning and education in bridging the digital inequalities affecting older adults in Ghana. The chapter argues that the continual marginalisation of adults in the digitalised space could create a new form of social exclusion. However, adult learning and education can be harnessed as a nexus in bridging such a generational gap and must be considered within Ghana's broader digitalisation policy frameworks.