Abeiku Santana begs Ghanaians to help advance tourism industry

Tourism Ambassador, Abeiku Santana has reiterated calls on private investors and individuals to join efforts to improve Ghana’s tourism industry.

According to him, Ghana will become a number one tourist destination in Africa if all Ghanaians come on board.

Abeiku made the call while speaking on Viasat 1’s Morning Show on Wednesday.

He was on the show with Hon. Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Elizabeth Ofosu-Agyare to talk about 2016 edition Ghana Carnival, which is scheduled to place from July 1 to 3, 2016.

“Tourism is a significant contributor to economic growth and development if we can get all hands on boards,” he said.

Ghana is currently one of the richly endowed countries in sub-Saharan Africa in the area of tourism. The country is blessed with dozens of historical monuments and tourist sites and no wonder it is increasingly becoming a first point destination for most tourists around the world who seek to either get away from the stress of work, spend time with friends and family or change their natural environments.

Every year it records encouraging arrivals including Europeans, Americans, Latinos and other Africans.

The country’s year-round tropical warm climate along with its wildlife; exotic waterfalls such as Kintampo waterfalls as well as the largest waterfall in West Africa, the Tagbo Falls; Ghana’s coastal palm-lined sandy beaches; caves; mountains; meteorite impact crater and lakes such as Lake Bosumtwi make Ghana the place to be.

Ghana is also home to the largest lake in the world by surface area – the Lake Volta, dozens of castles and forts, nature reserves and national parks.

Abeiku acknowledged that over the years the tourism industry has been a significant contributor to the country’s economic growth and development. It is a major source of foreign exchange, employment, and government revenues.

This, he revealed, “In 2013, the direct contribution of the Travel & Tour industry to Ghana’s GDP was US$1.34 billion, representing 2.8% of GDP.

The number of jobs directly supported by tourism was 124,000 and Travel & Tour investment amounted to US$303 million in 2013. Ghana’s tourism industry development indicators have increased over the years.

International tourist receipts increased from US$970 million in 2008 to US$1,068 in 2013. Also, the number of annual international visitors to Ghana is now roughly 950,000 and is expected to grow to 1.5 million by 2024.”

However, he said all Ghanaians must come onboard to ensure more advance industry. The industry he added should not be left in the hands of government alone.