Ghana’s tourism sector recorded a surprising decline in international tourism earnings in 2025, losing an estimated US$490 million in receipts even as the country welcomed more visitors than it did the previous year.

Figures released by Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts Minister, Abla Dzifa Gomashie show that tourism receipts fell from US$4.83 billion in 2024 to US$4.34 billion in 2025, representing a decline of 10.14 percent.

At the same time, international tourist arrivals increased from 1,288,804 to 1,306,962, adding more than 18,000 visitors to the country’s tourism market.

The figures, disclosed during the Government Accountability Series in Accra, have raised questions about why higher visitor numbers failed to translate into stronger tourism earnings.

The decline suggests that although Ghana attracted more international visitors, tourists spent less on average during their stay.

Available data indicate that average expenditure per visitor declined from approximately US$3,743 in 2024 to US$3,320 in 2025, representing a drop of about 11 percent.

The minister attributed part of the decline to exchange-rate movements, although detailed explanations of how currency fluctuations affected tourism receipts were not immediately provided.

Industry analysts say exchange-rate changes can influence the way tourism receipts are calculated, particularly when expenditures are converted into US dollars.

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They caution, however, that exchange-rate movements alone may not fully explain the decline.

Several factors could have contributed to the lower earnings.

These include changes in the composition of visitors, shorter lengths of stay, lower spending on accommodation and entertainment, an increase in travellers staying with friends and relatives instead of using commercial lodging facilities, and changes in spending patterns among members of the Ghanaian diaspora.

The latest figures come amid discussions about the country’s tourism marketing strategy and efforts to diversify tourism activities beyond the popular end-of-year entertainment calendar that has become synonymous with “Detty December.”

Some industry observers have questioned whether new tourism initiatives introduced in 2025 may have altered visitor behaviour without generating equivalent spending across the wider tourism value chain.

Despite the decline in receipts, other indicators suggest that the sector continued to expand.

Domestic tourism increased from 1.68 million visits in 2024 to 1.79 million in 2025, representing growth of about seven percent. The number of licensed tourism enterprises also increased from 6,702 to 7,109, while travel-related businesses expanded by 18.6 percent, reflecting continued investment in the industry.

The country’s leading tourist attractions, including Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park, Kakum National Park, Cape Coast Castle and Elmina Castle, collectively recorded more than 1.37 million visits in 2025.

The figures highlight an important challenge for policymakers: tourism success cannot be measured solely by arrival numbers.

Economists note that tourism receipts are often a better indicator of the sector’s economic contribution because they capture actual spending on hotels, restaurants, transportation, entertainment, shopping and other tourism-related services.

The 2026 tourism figures will now be closely watched to determine whether the government’s current tourism strategy can reverse the decline in visitor spending and restore the sector’s earnings growth.