Papaye organises ‘Our Day’ for basic school pupils

The Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) has called on all educational institutions in the country to form tourism clubs to promote domestic tourism.

It said the move was necessary to help students to appreciate the country’s diverse culture and its tourist sites.

The acting Deputy Chief Executive of GTA in charge of Operations, Mr Ekow Sampson, who made the call, said: “We need education that will bring up leaders in the hospitality industry, tourism management and all those aspects from the bottom to the uppermost part of the industry”.

He was speaking at the 2018 Papaye Excellence Awards (Our Day Special) event organised by Papaye Fast Food Company in Accra last Thursday (November 29, 2018).

Our Day Special

The event attracted more than 800 pupils from 33 private and public first cycle schools in the Greater Accra Region.

 It was aimed at rewarding pupils who had distinguished themselves in the selected schools.

They included Our Lady of Holy Cross School, Vision School Complex, Queen Esther school, Mount Zion Methodist School, Ayalolo ‘3’ School, Mamprobi Sempe Junior High School (JHS), St. Monica Primary and Junior High School, De Youngsters International School and SOS Children’s Village Ghana.

The pupils were given items such as food and drinks, books, pencils, T-shirts and certificates.

Speaking at the event, Mr Sampson said the formation of the clubs would offer students the opportunity to travel to other parts of the country on excursions.

“We are already in talks with the Ministry of Education to get tourism into the syllabus so that excursions become part of the curricula to promote domestic tourism,” Mr Sampson stated.

He said GTA had put in place measures that would promote the country’s tourism.

“We have initiated lots of tourism promotion activities such as See Ghana, Eat Ghana and Feel Ghana which are geared towards domestic awareness,” he added.

Motivation

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Papaye Fast Food Company, Mr Divine Kwadwo Asiedu, said the awards formed part of the corporate social responsibility of the company to reward, motivate and challenge students to dream big and aspire to reach the pinnacle of life.

“We are celebrating and encouraging them for their academic performance by giving them educational materials to enhance their learning,” he said.

He also used the opportunity to announce the establishment of the company’s new branches at Haatso and Awudome Estates in Accra.

For her part, a Deputy Director of the Accra Metro Education Office, Mrs Rita Offei-Darko, lauded Papaye Fast Food Company for initiating the awards scheme and sustaining it over the years.

“We want to thank you so much for motivating our children to excel and be responsible people who will help the nation’s development,” she said.