Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Abla Dzifa Gomashie, has announced the government’s plans to host a continental cultural festival, dubbed Afro-Gastro, in Accra in December.

Speaking on Day one of the Black Star Fashion Week in Accra on November 4, 2026, the minister disclosed that the festival commenced on December 9 to 12, 2026, adding that it would go beyond food to celebrate Africa’s rich cultural heritage, including fashion, music, film and theatre.

According to Dzifa Gomashie, the African Union expressed interest in the initiative after it was promoted and asked that the event be moved to December to allow for a larger celebration.

“I had the audacity to bring up what we call the Afro-Gastro. So the Afro-Gastro was promoted, and the African Union saw it and decided to come and partner with us. They appealed to me not to hold it in September of this year, but to move it to December so we can have a bigger one.

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“And it’s not only going to be about food. From the 9th to the 12th of December, we’re going to have a celebration of our gastronomy, our fashion, our music, our film, our theatre. And it’s not just a Ghanaian thing. It is the whole of the continent. The African Union is bringing Africa to Ghana,” she said.

The minister further disclosed that organisers were anticipating about 4,000 participants under one roof, with opportunities for individuals and businesses to exhibit their work.

She revealed that the main activities would be hosted at La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, particularly along its beachfront, while performances would also take place at the National Theatre and the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park.

Dzifa Gomashie stressed that the event would be free to attend and urged Ghanaians to make time to participate in what she described as a first-of-its-kind continental celebration.

“We are anticipating that with your help and your promotion, we should be able to accommodate and host 4,000 people under one roof, talking about all the domains that I’ve mentioned and more. Opportunities will be there for you to exhibit your work, and it is going to be mainly hosted by La Palm Royal Beach on the beachfront.

“There will be performances at the National Theatre and also at the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park. Please make room and time to participate in it. It is not a ticketed event, but it is an event that you must support because it is the first of its kind and it is starting in Accra, Ghana. Let us make our cultural heritage an economic asset.”

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Beyond the festival, the minister further called on Ghanaians to deliberately patronise locally made products and embrace the country’s cultural offerings as a way of strengthening the economy.

According to her, consistently supporting local products and creative works would help transform Ghana’s cultural heritage into an economic asset.

“It’s a choice you must make every day, not once in a week, not twice in a week, but every day: deliberately choose to eat Ghanaian food, deliberately choose to wear Ghanaian clothes, Ghanaian crafts, Ghanaian music, Ghanaian everything, and that’s how the economy gets stronger,” she added.

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