Work towards improving tourism sector - Dr Awal charges GTDC Board
The Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Dr Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, has charged the newly appointed Board of Directors of the Ghana Tourism Development Company (GTDC) to come up with a plan to improve on the fortunes of the company.
He gave the board three months to produce the plan that would make the GTDC economically viable, adding: “This is an important company and the instructions are very clear.”
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Dr Awal gave the charge when he swore in seven members of the board in Accra yesterday.
It is chaired by Mr Kwame Acheampong Boateng.
The other members are the Chief Executive Officer of the GTDC, Mr Kwadwo Odame Antwi; Mr Tanimu Osman, Mrs Jacqueline Akuffo and Ms
Radia Adama Saani, all government nominees.
The others are Messrs Vitus-Otto Langmgne, representing the GTA; Akwasi Owusu Agyeman, representing the Bank of Ghana; Philip Abradu-Otoo and Stephen Kwame Oduro.
Target
Dr Awal said Ghana would target two million tourists every year from 2024, but conceded that that would require that tourist attractions, such as castles, forts, festivals and cultural assets, were revamped to attract both local and international visitors to boost the economy.
“The GTDC was set up as the commercial wing of the ministry, but it has not functioned as expected over the years. We want to change the narrative. I, therefore, want to urge you to run this company as a business and not another failed state-owned enterprise,” he said.
According to him, the tourism sector must be the country’s highest revenue source, after raising $3.3 billion in 2019 and now targeting $5 billion annually.
In 2019, he said, Ghana received 1.1 million arrivals, with 500,000 domestic tourists, adding that the country hoped to attract two million tourists in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic broke out.
“Luckily, the pandemic is sliding; we received about 339,000 international arrivals in 2021, up from 312,000 in 2020, growing almost 80 per cent. We can do more.
“For domestic tourism, we moved from 300,000 to almost 620,000 in 2021. We want to go to one million by the end of 2024,” the minister added.
Commitment
The GTDC Board Chairman, Mr Acheampong Boateng, asserted that tourism could be the number one foreign exchange earner and pledged the commitment of the board to work towards achieving that feat.
He said since the team had been given a clear idea of the state of the company, it would endeavour to turn the situation around for the better.
The GTDC is one of the 13 agencies under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture.
It was established as a private limited liability company in 1972, with a mandate including tourism and infrastructural development.
It also doubles as the commercial wing of the ministry and offers services such as tour operations, vehicle rentals and event management.
The GTDC is also the implementing agency for the redevelopment and management of the Paga Zenga Crocodile Pond and the Akwamufie Palace Museum under a World Bank-funded project.
