Quality service delivery: imperative in hospitality, tourism sector
Ghana is endowed with rich and enviable tourism resources. These resources include castles, forts, museums, national parks, natural resource reserves, beautiful beaches, rich traditional culture, festivals and hospitable people.
The country is recognised and endorsed by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) as preferred destination in Africa.
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Currently, the tourism sector is the fourth largest foreign exchange earner for the country, with the potential to be the topmost foreign exchange earner.
The development of the sector over the past years has led to phenomenal upsurge of hotels, hostels, restaurants, nightclubs, event centres, entertainment centres, charter flights, travel and tour companies and car rental companies.
Indeed, there is now the full range of hotel ratings, from budget to five-stars in the country, especially with high concentration in Accra, Kumasi and Takoradi. This buttresses the fact that tourism and hospitality are inseparable.
A key expectation of the guests is quality service delivery and the question is: are the guests at our various tourism establishments provided the requisite quality service in order to maintain Ghana on the world’s tourism map?
Stakeholders have no choice but to be committed to making quality service a cornerstone in their quest to provide memorable services, knowing that their industry is a highly competitive one.
Tourists will certainly move to other countries or destinations if they are not satisfied with the quality of service delivered to them in Ghana.
What then is quality service?
We can describe quality service as that type of service that meets or exceeds the expectation of a guest, thereby, leaving a lasting memory on his or her mind.
Such a service will compel the guests to ask for more and stay longer at the destination. Examples of quality service include operating within clean and neat environment, warm welcome at the front desks, well mannered and dressed staff with the appropriate name tags, functioning equipment and gadgets, etc.
How is quality service being delivered in Ghana’s tourism sector? Candidly, the delivery of quality service must assume a stakeholder approach.
The tourism sector is highly social and fragmented. There is the need for all the key players to unite and be committed to the agenda of providing services that exceed the expectations of their guests.
Stakeholders
These stakeholders include the guests, the tourism enterprise operators, tourism trade associations, the Ghana Tourism Authority, the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, and the academia.
Guests at the various tourism facilities in the country are of key importance. In fact, they are the raison d’etre of the tourism businesses.
The needs and expectations of guests must be clearly ascertained and catered for. As the target markets, it is necessary for them to clearly articulate their needs, wants and expectations to the tourism facility operators.
Of equal importance is the training of workers in the sector on a regular basis.There is no guarantee for quality service delivery if the employees in the country’s tourism sector do not have the requisite cutting-edge knowledge, skills and abilities.
The various trade associations, such as, the Ghana Tourism Federation, the Ghana Hotels Association, the Tour Operators Union of Ghana and the Car Rental Association of Ghana, among others, must be committed to championing the cause of quality service delivery.
It is well known that the country’s tourism product is not all that different from that of other major tourism destinations and competitors in the West African sub-region.
Adding value to the existing national tourism products and having an unbeatable passion towards excellent service delivery are what will keep the country be at the forefront of tourism destinations in the world.
Furthermore, the country’s academic institutions have a pivotal role to play in ensuring quality service delivery.
As centres of knowledge and excellence, it is expected that graduates from these institutions are adequately trained to deliver on the job.
The curriculum for teaching and training the student must emphasise industrial attachments and exposure.
It is necessary for both academia and the practitioners to regularly meet and exchange views on the current and emerging trends in the tourism sector.
GTB
Another key player in ensuring quality service delivery in the nation’s tourism space is the Ghana Tourism Authority (formerly known as the Ghana Tourist Board).
The GTA has the mandate to regulate the tourism sector via registration, inspection, licensing and classification of the tourism and hospitality enterprises in the country.
It is also responsible for the marketing and promoting the country as a tourism destination. The required standards to guide and guarantee quality service are clearly stated in such legislative instruments as Tourism (Registration and Licensing of Tourist Accommodation Enterprise) Regulations, 2016(L.I. 2239); Tourism(Registration and licensing of Food,Beverage and Entertainment Enterprise) Regulations, 2016 (L.I. 2238); Tourism (Tourist Sites) Regulations, 2019 (L.I. 2393); and Tourism (Travel Trade Enterprise Registration and licensing) Regulations, 2019(L.I.2389).
As part of its function, the GTA implements and ensures compliance with the standards contained in these laws, grants licences for the tourism sector, regulates and supervises it.
With the phenomenal increase in the number of tourism enterprises across the country, the GTA must be provided with adequate resources (material, human and financial) to carry out its oversight role.
The administration and operations of the industry regulator must be effectively decentralised with more district offices needing to be opened.
The ultimate goal is to ensure that the guests at the various tourism facilities are provided the best of services and experiences.
Herein lies the strategic importance and role of the GTA. In the same breadth, it is natural to look up to the sector ministry for policies and programmes that will make the quest for quality service delivery a reality.
For example, a policy that directs all those who intend to work in the accommodation, food, beverage, entertainment and travel trade enterprises must be trained and certified by a recognised national body will be more than appropriate.
Without a shadow of doubt, the success of the country’s tourism development agenda (National Tourism Development Plan, 2013-2027) hinges on a concerted and deliberate effort that ensures that guests at the country’s tourism enterprises are provided facilities and services that exceed their expectation.
Nothing will sell Ghana as the topmost tourism destination in the world than the words and memories of those guests who visited our shores. Yes, memories sell, quality memories do it best!
The writer is a Senior Standards, Quality Assurance Officer at the Greater Accra Regional Office of the Ghana Tourism Authority.
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