Mohammed Awal with other officials during the launch of the events under December in GH
The Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, has announced that over 100,000 diasporans are expected to patronize this year’s December in GH events.
According to Mr. Awal, the programme calendar which has over 90 events endorsed by the Beyond The Return steering committee include event taking place from November 2022 through to January 2023.
The Tourism industry has estimated an increase in the number of diasporans expected to visit the country 100,000.
He said some events have become popular and have therefore been included in this year’s activities including, Afrochella, Little Havana, Taste of Ghana, Afro Nation, YouTube Creators Festival, Westside Carnival, Rhythms on da Runway, and the Roverman Productions Festival of Plays among others.
“We’re expecting this year to be the biggest for ‘December in GH. With all the work the tourism ministry has done, good publicity, and stakeholder engagement, we are expecting over 100,000 diasporans this year, he said.”
Mr. Awal called on event organizers, vendors, and caterers to endeavor to practice good hygiene and exhibit customer care practices in their engagement with the diasporans who purchase their services.
He made this remark during the official unveiling of the endorsed schedule of events for the 2022 ‘December in GH’ campaign at a stakeholders forum in Accra with the Ghana Traditional Catering Association.
Ghana was recently listed as one of the top travel destinations by National Geographic. It’s predicted that the country will receive a record number of international travelers this season and the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) has indicated its readiness to receive the visitors.
According to the CEO of GTA, Akwasi Agyeman, “We have kick-started a series of engagements with other industry stakeholders to ensure that we are all ready. We are encouraging Ghanaians to live up to our reputation as a friendly and hospitable people”.
The Vice Chairperson of Ghana Traditional Catering, Sheila Naa Ayeley Annan, on behalf of the association pledged to abide by the laid-down procedures, rules, and regulations in their line of duties.
She also called on the sector minister to support the association with funds to support other caterers to improve their services, saying, “due to the increase in foodstuffs most caterers have run out of funding and are unable to deliver as expected. We need your help to make our work sustainable,” she said.
December in GH is the country’s biggest celebration of all things, Cultural, Entertainment, Adventure, Nightlife, Fashion, Gastronomy, Tours, and Community service.
Since 2019, the ‘December in GH’ event schedule is one that many travelers look forward to when planning their activities for their holiday trip to Ghana.
For locals, it offers the opportunity to know what is going on around the country in December.
BY Prince Fiifi Yorke