Tourism
From The Report: Ghana 2013
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After cocoa exports and gold mining, tourism is the top foreign currency earner in Ghana’s economy, generating some $694m of foreign currency for the government in 2012. The industry is vital to overall economic growth and is expected to contribute 5.4% of GDP by 2023, growing at a rate of 4.5% between 2013 and 2023. The new 15-year National Tourism Development Plan, which runs from 2013 to 2027, aims to boost the sector’s performance via several partnerships with international organisations, including the EU and UNESCO. Hotel development in Accra and Takoradi is expected to continue to drive investment, providing for business travellers’ needs in a rapidly growing economy. In the long term, Ghana’s proximity to Europe, and the fact that multiple cultural and ecological destinations are located on or within a short drive from the country’s coastal strip, are factors that continue to open new opportunities for investment.

This chapter contains an interview with Sampson Donkoh, Deputy Chief Executive, Ghana Tourism Authority.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Important trip: With backing from the state, marketing and promotional efforts should help to drive growth across a range of niches
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After cocoa exports and gold mining, tourism is the top foreign currency earner in Ghana’s economy. The sector generated some $694m of foreign currency for the government in 2012. Though tourism’s status as the third-highest earner may soon be challenged by other sectors, it will remain an industry with high potential for growth and an important source of employment for thousands of Ghanaians. Indeed, according to figures from the World Economic Forum (WEF), tourism’s contribution to GDP…

Interview

OBG talks to Sampson Donkoh, Deputy Chief Executive, Ghana Tourism Authority
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Interview:Sampson Donkoh What plans are in place to allocate the money coming from the tourism fund? SAMPSON DONKOH: So far a large portion of the money going into the fund is coming from upmarket hotels. The collection so far has been very smooth since the luxury market has been very cooperative. We expect to see challenges when it comes to collecting money from the informal sector though. The law allows us to take a one-time payment, a lump sum, which will facilitate the process related…

Analysis

Expanding capacity: Road and hotel projects are driving sector development
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With a number of international players set to enter the market in the near future, Ghana is currently experiencing a modest hotel boom. This increase in hotel infrastructure is complemented by large-scale transportation developments. New infrastructure projects are creating opportunities for tourist endeavours, as well as providing more rapid connections between the nation’s most important business destinations. COMING SOON: Greater Accra, with a population of 3m, is currently home to 42%…