Once aiming for a life of helping people through health care as a doctor, American-born Ghanaian George Madjitey Jr. is now helping farmers in Ghana to reap the rewards of being part of a modern, technological economy.

Born and raised in a tight-knit Ghanaian community in Houston Texas, Madjitey was planning on being a doctor, but that changed when he had the chance as an undergraduate student to intern at a government hospital in the Ghanaian capital of Accra.

“I learned quickly that organization was not a priority,” he said, “In contrasting the dynamics of the medical environment in Ghana to the U.S, I saw the issue of organization to be rooted in the lack of technological infusion.”

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Despite completing a Masters in Healthcare Administration in 2017, that same year, Madjitey saw an opportunity with drone technology in Ghana’s burgeoning oil and gas sector, attended Houston’s Off-Shore Technology Conference (OTC) and connect with delegates from Ghana.

“But we ultimately recognized that the oil and gas environment was riddled with bureaucracy and regulations that would impede on our ability to truly add value within the sector,” he said.

So he and his business partner went back to the drawing board and found a new direction: agriculture.

“In 2020, the Ghanaian farmer is arguably forgotten,” Madjitey said. “Left out of the data & mechanization revolution, local farmers are most susceptible to the influences of climate change.”

“With a lack of reliable & subsidized extension services specific to agriculture, local agri-stakeholders are not being afforded a fighting chance.”

Madjitey says his company, GEM Industrial Solutions, incorporates Blockchain in their mapping methodology and AI into their crop scouting & counting services.

“Providing these services at a price point that is sensitive to the market, local stakeholders are presented the opportunity to improve upon the efficiency of their cultivation practices, better strategize for planting, & reduce their use of agrochemicals, each of which positively influences their bottom line,” he said.

Madjitey, who is now based in Ghana, says in comparison to Tanzania and Rwanda, the regulations around drones are more favorable in Ghana.

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