Viamo Launches 231 Voice AI Platform in Ghana with MTN

In Short

• Viamo has launched 231, a toll-free voice line in Ghana.
• The service works on basic phones and does not need mobile data or a smartphone.
• Callers can ask questions in Twi, Ewe, Hausa, Dagbani, Ga, or English.

What Happened

Viamo launched its 231 voice platform in Ghana this week, positioning it as a new national channel for information and two-way communication. The service was built with telecom operator MTN Nigeria and is free to call.

231 is built on interactive voice response, which is the “press 1 for X” phone menu most people already know. Viamo says it has added “offline AI”, meaning callers can speak naturally and still get AI-generated answers even if they do not have internet access on their device.

The AI layer is called Ask Viamo Anything, or AVA. A caller dials 231, asks a question out loud, and listens to a spoken response. Viamo says organisations like government agencies, health providers, and nonprofits can add vetted content to the system, so answers can be tailored for topics like health guidance, agriculture advice, or financial literacy.

Ghana is the fourth country where Viamo has launched this type of MTN-backed voice service after Liberia, Zambia, and Rwanda. Viamo says it operates in 23 countries across Africa, Asia and the Middle East, with offline AI tools deployed in 13 countries across 10 languages.

Why It Matters

Most AI tools in Africa are built for apps, chat, and smartphones. That leaves out people who use feature phones, who have unstable connectivity, or who are not comfortable navigating apps.

A voice channel like 231 uses infrastructure that already reaches most people, the mobile network. For governments and service providers, this can become a practical way to deliver public information, run surveys, and support behaviour change without forcing a data-first user experience.

It also adds pressure on builders to think beyond internet-only AI. In Ghana and similar markets, voice-first and offline-capable systems may be the difference between a demo and something that works at national scale.