According to Dr. Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, Minister of Tourism, Arts, and Culture, Ghana is anticipated to generate $6 billion in tourism earnings over the following four years. The predicted revenue rise was predicated on a number of initiatives, including intense promotional operations, policies, and programs, according to the minister.

During an Editors’ Forum the ministry hosted in Accra yesterday, the minister made this disclosure. The forum, with the theme “Tourism, Policy, Progress, Partnerships,” sought to ensure that the media understood the importance of tourism to the nation’s development strategy.

According to Dr. Awal, the government has committed some money to modernize tourist attractions all around the nation as one of the steps to achieving the projected revenue.

He included the W.E.B. Du Bois Center, Osu Castle, Elmina Castle, a few forts, parks, the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum, and the National Museum as modernization projects, among others. This will increase tourism and turn the industry into a true tool for economic development, he continued.

As part of the four-year Destination Ghana Project, the minister stated that the industry has also set a target of two million domestic and international tourist arrivals in 2026.

He said that the industry was using meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) to position Ghana as the preferred travel destination in Africa and elevate it to the top contributor to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

“MICE and business travel had a combined value of $1.5 trillion in 2023. Africa’s contribution is less than 2%, despite the fact that South Africa, Egypt, and Togo are popular destinations for business travelers. However, Ghana is currently home to the secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), so I believe we can also succeed, he continued.

Dr. Awal said the ministry wants to set up a GH100 million tourist entrepreneurship initiative next year to encourage young people to develop projects on sustainable tourism to resuscitate the industry and create jobs for the youth.

“We’re going to train 6,000 young people in the tourism value chain to improve customer care in the tourism sector. The most important thing in tourism is to repeat tourism, but when I come and I do not come again is not tourism. I must be able to come back with my family and friends, stay longer and spend more,” he stated.

He appealed to the media to support the ministry achieve its target saying “Don’t look at tourism as a back burner, make it a front-burner issue.”

Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, the Minister of Information, emphasized the need for more cooperation between the public and private sectors, as well as between academics, the media, and the general public, in order to foster an environment that is conducive to sustainable growth.

He appealed to the media to assist the ministry by raising awareness and encouraging more collaborations to help the sector accomplish its goal.

The Ghana Tourism Authority’s CEO, Mr. Akwasi Agyeman, said his organization was trying to make the nation a “hub of enjoyment” in December of this year with help from the ministry.