The hotel sector in Ghana has remained resilient despite recent global economic challenges, according to a new report authored by PwC.
Following the decline in the oil price and that of other commodities, the government has taken steps to diversify the country’s economy by promoting the hospitality and tourism sector.
Ghana’s hospitality industry grew 1.2 percent from 2015 to 2016.
The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) expects Ghana’s tourism industry to expand by 5.6 percent in 2016 and maintain an annual growth rate of 5.1 percent per annum from 2017 through to 2027.
A number of internationally-branded hotels are based in Accra.
As at May 2017, there were 2,723 hotels and lodges in Ghana.
There is expected to be an increase in the number of business travellers to the country, as the government embarks on a number of initiatives to stimulate economic growth.
The government is also making improvements in transport infrastructure, with the construction of a third terminal at Accra’s Kotoka International Airport and allocation of funds for the repair of roads to popular tourist destinations.
The hotel industry is expected to grow 1.1 percent in 2017, 2.1 percent in 2018 and 2.3 percent in 2019.
“Having regard to the investment by foreign investors in the industry through the establishment of high-rated hotels, and an increasing number of tourists and business travellers, it is expected that there will be continuous growth in the industry,” Calicchio commented.
The hospitality sector in Africa’s emerging markets looks set to profit from foreign investment and an influx of foreign travellers. The emerging markets are set to post faster growth in revenue than their counterparts in developed countries, making them integral to the expansion strategies of some of the world’s leading hotel developers.
Pietro Calicchio, Hospitality & Gaming Industry leader for PwC Southern Africa (www.PwC.co.za) said: “The growth potential of Africa is high mainly because of the rapid economic growth in some economies, a growing middle class and an increase in visits from foreign visitors.
Although the potential for foreign investment has improved substantially in Africa over the past several years, it is not without a number of challenges.
Some of these challenges include a drop in oil prices and other commodities, social unrest, unstable electricity supply and the impact of one of the most severe droughts across the African continent.
PwC’s report features information about hotel accommodation in South Africa, Nigeria, Mauritius, Kenya and Tanzania.
This year, it went a step further to examine Ghana and Ethiopia- emerging hotel markets.
By Samuel Boadi