THE KENYAN High Commissioner to Ghana, Eliphas Mugendi Barine, has underlined the strategic conditions needed for a rapid face-lifting of Ghana’s and Africa’s tourism industry in general.
He said for the continent to reap the full benefits of the sector, officials at the helm of affairs need to establish more networks among other Africa countries and encourage the citizenry to explore countries within the continent.
“I think as a continent like Africa, we are endowed with so much both in terms of flora and fauna, in terms of catch-ups, sites and so many other things that the rest of world do not have. And therefore, I think for us to be able to reap the full benefits of this sector considering that competition is so big and tourists have options to do many other places we need to identify our niche and be able to improve a lot more on that so that we become attractive and the place of choice,” he stated.
He urged players in the tourism industry to make some conscious decisions, and sensitize the people Africans to begin to explore the continent and enjoy what really it has to offer, stressing that his appeal is not to discourage touristic explorations beyond Africa.
The Kenyan High Commissioner who was speaking at a Public- Private -Partnership Forum (PPPF) organised in Kumasi by officials of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) insisted that tourism within African countries should be prioritised so as to keep the wealth within the continent.
He also called for the building of skills of sector players and the improvement of standards so that services related to tourism can meet the expectations of tourists, adding “The sector has the capacity to resolve a lot of challenges we face today and make the continent competitive”.
For his part, the board chairman for Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), Seth Adjei Baah, said tourism is a huge industry which people should take serious adding that the actors should work in such a way that people will see the essence of venturing into tourism business.
He called on the industry players to cooperate with government to generate income for themselves and the country, pointing out that the latter is positioned to support the private sector.
Mr. Adjei Baah, who spoke on behalf of the Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Dr. Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, at the forum, appealed the players within the sector to stop complaining about taxes and other tariffs imposed on them.
He explained that if players are able to generate much wealth, taxes they pay will be infinitesimal for them. “It is because we are not making the money that is why we are complaining about one percent tax. But if we are able to make a million and they (government) say pay one percent, you will be happy to pay,” he added.
FROM David Afum, Kumasi