Abeiku Santana on tourism drive
Well-known radio personality, Gilbert Abeiku Aggrey, also referred to as Abeiku Santana, was officially made Tourism Ambassador by the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts last May and he has since been on a crusade to help promote the sector.
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In a recent interaction with The Mirror, Abeiku Santana said general appreciation of the important role of tourism in the nation’s development was fairly low and that spurred him on to devise a three-pronged approach to create more awareness.
One of the three areas he is targeting is the transport sector where he had already started engaging taxi drivers on the crucial services they offer to the tourism business. They are often the first points of contact by many tourists when they arrive here.
According to the tourism ambassador, it was essential to strengthen the link between taxis and tourism and to enhance the level of service provided to tourists.
He has, therefore, had positive interactions with taxi drivers in Tema, Ashaiman, the Kotoka International Airport and the Kumasi Airport.
The man, who is currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Tourism Management, imparted some entrepreneurial skills to the drivers and said there are plans to roll out the campaign across the country.
Abeiku Santana’s second area of engagement is with front desk managers at accommodation facilities. He said they were solid links between tourists lodging in their facilities and other sectors of the industry.
He entreated front desk managers to help tourists out with useful information on where to find decent food, the best entertainment venues and general places of interest.
According to him, tourism was about spending money and that Ghanaians must ensure that tourists who visited the country spend, as well as derive value for the money they bring in.
His third area of concern is education and said institutions already offering courses in tourism must make it as practical oriented as possible.
He commended the University of Cape Coast for its course on tourism.
“Ghana has the potential to benefit immensely from the sub-region because of the slave trade, heritage attractions, as well as the countries admirable history in Pan-Africanism and we must all do what we can to reap from those areas and more,” the tourism ambassador said.