Hotels association rewards members tonight
This evening, January 23 at the La Palm Royal Beach Hotel in Accra, the Ghana Hotels Association (GHA) will host its maiden awards ceremony for its members and patrons across the country.
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Theme for the ceremony is: ‘Promoting Quality Standards in Ghana Hotels’. It promises to be a night of fun, excitement, good music, delicious food and refreshing drinks.
The association was formed in 1975 by about 20 hotel owners who felt the need to come together to protect their investments and contribute to the development of the hotel industry in Ghana. It may have taken the GHA too long to institute an awards scheme for its members and patrons.
From a humble beginning of less than two dozens of members, the association can presently boast of over 1000 members made up of directors, proprietors, general managers or accredited representatives of budget, guesthouse, and one to five star hotels spread across the 10 regions of Ghana
In line with its mandate, the GHA continues to spearhead the development of the hotel and indeed, the tourism industry in this country within the general context of government's statutory support to the industry.
It is significant to note that hoteliers' contribution to the one per cent Tourism Development Levy instituted about three years ago exceeds 90 per cent of the total funds raised so far.
Also of significance are the employment and job opportunities that the hotel industry provides for a wide range of skilled and unskilled people including artisans, traders, suppliers and clerks.
The industry's contribution to Ghana's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as a sector under the Services Sector is also significant. All these have been made possible through the hard work of hoteliers ably supported by the GHA.
Tonight, practitioners will be honoured in 30 categories including Hotelier of the Year, Front of House Manager of the Year, Front of House Team of the Year, Hotel Restaurant Team of the Year, Hotel Restaurant Manager of the Year and House-keeper of the Year.
Others are Green Hotel of the Year, Human Resource Manager of the Year, Human Resource Team of the Year, Food and Beverage Manager of the Year, Conference and Banqueting Team of the Year and Lifetime Achievement.
A strong and healthy GHA is a must for the growth and development of the hotel industry in Ghana and the association needs to rise to the occasion.
On that note, it is apt to congratulate all awardees of the maiden GHA Annual Awards and encourage all other hoteliers to work harder in the interest of their business and mother Ghana.
*The writer is the current Chairman of the Greater Accra Regional branch of the GHA.