Akwasi Agyeman
Tourism Consultant and Analyst at Pishon Consult Limited, Mr. Emmanuel Frimpong, has said that tourist arrivals for “December in GH” would exceed its target if all sectors support the activities of the tourism sector.
He said, “All sectors of the economy are in one way or the other connected to tourism, and they must realise this connection and do everything in their capacity to support and promote the industry to create wealth, employment and opportunities for people.”
Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, he said over the years, “December in GH” had proven to be a successful event, and one that has the potential of attracting over one million people if all ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) come on board, with the needed resources.
“If you look at the numbers that came in last year within a matter of a month or six weeks, we had over 90,000 people coming into the country, and this means that the benefits are enormous,” he added.
“The December in GH initiative is a wonderful one and has been successful over the years; however, it has been characterised with various challenges that need to be addressed, to improve upon them in the coming years.”
The consultant said some of the challenges include late planning of events, limited facilities and equipment, unlicensed events, and security arrangement.
Mr. Frimpong revealed that even though there were events organised across the country, most of the big events were centered in Accra within specific localities, and this deprived people in other parts of the country the experience as well as causes congestion and traffic in the capital.
He appealed to government to partner the private sector to train and build the capacities of industry players in specific areas, including engineering, set up, among others to help organise successful events that meet international standards.
-GNA