 Tourism blooms
Tourism has grown from a negligible contributor
to GDP in the early 1990s to become the country's
third ranked foreign exchange earner. With West
African receipts totaling over US$240 million from
about 300,000 tourist arrivals, the sector in the
West African Region grew by 12.5% in 1996 according
to the World
Tourism Organization . With tourism receipts
growing by 24.4%, almost double that of the Region
as a whole, Ghana is the fastest growing tourist
destination in the West Africa.
Conservative estimates project tourist arrivals growing to 400,000 by the end of the decade, and to one million by the year 2010. Facilities in the industry will have to expand rapidly to cope with the projected growth. Although private tourism investment has grown substantially in recent years, there remains a great need for more investment in the industry. Deputy Tourism Minister, Mr. O. Amofa says: "Even though we have a large concentration of hotels in Accra, we still need to encourage the building of more in the Sheraton, five-star class."
Ghana has many outstanding tourist attractions such, as the only forest canopy walkway in Africa in the Kakum National Park. UNESCO has designated three of the oldest and most important castles in West Africa as World Heritage Sites. And, of course, Ghana has one of the largest man-made lakes in the world in the 8,500 sq. Km Volta Lake. |
The country's excellent showing in tourism development has come through a consistent, far-reaching and aggressive effort to position it as an ideal tourist destination. The country's rich culture and the warm hospitality of its people is renowned throughout West Africa and beyond. An emphasis on cultural heritage and conference tourism has now being widened to include leisure, sports, recreation, and most importantly, the new category of eco-tourism.
Under Ghana's 15-year master development plan now in place, tourism development zones were created to guide investment activities to areas with a high potential of growth. The plan was designed as an integrated system of tourism development zones, gateways, centers and stopovers all linked together by excursion routes.
Additional investment, especially for small to medium-sized investors, is worth considering. Opportunities exist in recreational and sports facilities (especially water sports), entertainment, touring and travel services, not only in Accra, but in the other nine regions of Ghana as well. |
GHANA
