Tourism development must improve after 57 years of nationhood

Ghana has experienced sustained steady increase in tourist arrivals since the early 1980s from 145,780 in 1990 to 399,000 in 2000. Tourism arrivals increased from 172,000 in 1991 to 429,000 in 2005.

Tourism has become one of the main pillars that hold the Ghanaian economy. International tourist arrivals and receipts have shown steady and positive trends since 2005.

This was a significant increase, even though, considering the target of 1,000,000 by 2007 which was set in the Tourism Strategy of the then Ministry of Tourism and Diasporan Relations, a lot of effort is required to ensure a doubling of the arrival figures in years to come.

However, in 2010, a new national target was set with 931,000 arrivals and they spent US$ 706 million. Last year, tourism fetched the country US$2.5 billion, confirming the sector as the fourth largest export after gold, cocoa and remittances.

The amount was spent by 1.3 million international tourists who visited the country during the year, according to the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA). The achievement, however, offers cold comfort, for although officials think that we are living up to the dream, Ghana’s piece of the global tourism pie is considered an insignificant drop in the vast ocean, seen from the universal perspective.

According to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), international tourism receipts reached an estimated US$1 billion worldwide. Modern tourism is closely linked to development. Today, the business volume of tourism equals or even surpasses that of oil exports, food products or automobiles.

In Ghana, however, the dream is far from the reality. Successive governments, without exception, have not shown enough commitment beyond rhetoric and good intentions. To succeed as a tourism destination, the intentions have to translate into larger budgetary allocations to the sector.

Some tourism development plans have been formulated since the 1970s. These include the 15 year tourism plan (1975-1990); 15 year tourism development plan (1996-2010); and the strategic action plan (2003-2007); National Tourism Marketing Strategy (2009-2012); and the Medium Term Development Plan (2010-2013).

However, these plans have been implemented to the letter as a result of changes in government and lack of funding. As a result, targets spelt out in these plans have not been realized. The 15-year tourism development plan of 1975 to 1990 targeted 357,000 arrivals by 1990, but only 145,780 was realized by the end of the period.

Also, the strategic action plan of 2003-2007 targeted one million arrivals by 2007, but at the end of the period, a little over half of that figure (586, 612) had been realized. While these tourism development plans have emphasized growth and competitiveness of the industry, the essential institutional framework and resources necessary for growth and competitiveness, have been lacking.

More needs to be done with respect to integration of tourism with other sectors of the economy such as agriculture, community involvement in tourism development, provision of investment incentives through taxation and the establishment of a tourism development fund.

Generally, pro-poor tourism policies have been lacking, and that is unfortunate for a country where tourism attractions are located in poverty-stricken communities.

The passing of the Tourism Act in 2011 is intended to help address some of the issues mentioned above since with the Act (Act 817), which changed the name from the Ghana Tourist Board to the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), the GTA is to become more proactive tourism development authority.

The GTA established the Tourism Development Fund to provide funding for tourism and tourism-related projects and programmes. The current Minister of Tourism and Creative Arts, Mrs Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, with an eye on the one percent Tourism Levy (also known as Bed Tax) collected by private operators, is determined to ensure that the Ministry will not be part of budget hearing.

She has plans to call a stakeholder meeting soon, partnering with the umbrella Ghana tourism Federation (GHATOF), to strategise the way forward for collection of the levy. At the moment, although 90 percent of the tourism plants have been registered to collect, only the big hotels are doing so faithfully.

“Every tourism facility everywhere in the remotest part of Ghana must be registered to pay the one percent”, she urges.

On the country’s inability to attract greater arrival numbers, Mrs Ofosu Adjare, believes the country’s pricing is right, but the problem lies in packaging and marketing the country as a popular destination. For example, have facilities like the Kakum Park been put strongly on the international tourism map? The challenge is selling what the country has.

Tourism is increasingly become competitive and many destinations are mapping out strategies to gain a competitive edge. The key to remaining competitive, however, lies in the availability of information on the country’s tourism resources, tourism market segments and other competing destinations. Such information which can be derived through market research feeds into the marketing strategy a destination.

In the marketing strategy document for 2009-2012, there is absolutely nothing on the target market segments and competing destinations such as Senegal because data is not readily available. There is the need to obtain greater insights into our tourism market segments such as business, leisure, among others.

This would enable the country tailor the tourist product to meet specific needs of our target market segments. Tourism market research should not be restricted to the compilation of statistics on tourist arrivals, receipts, employment etc. but more importantly information on motivations, characteristics and attitudes of target segments.

Ghana is considered an expensive tourist destination because the cost of hotel accommodation and air transport is relatively higher. Operators of tourism and hospitality businesses have complained about the numerous direct and indirect taxes, duties on imported goods, high cost of utilities and other overhead expenses. They have no option than to pass these costs onto consumers.

Additionally, the country cannot develop its full tourism potential if domestic tourism does not occupy its rightful place in the tourism equation. For most of the world’s top tourist destinations such as France, UK, Spain and USA, domestic tourism accounts for between 60-80% of their tourist arrivals.

Overdependence on international tourists could spell doom for the industry especially if as a result of financial and other political reasons. Domestic tourism is still low in Ghana partly due to the over concentration on marketing Ghana to international tourists.

Tourism is mainly a leisure activity and people will indulge in it only after they have met their more pressing needs. The question is how can the average Ghanaian indulge in tourism activities when he/she cannot afford the basic necessities of life?

School children especially should be encouraged to travel. The culture of travel should be imbibed in them so that when they grow, they will not depart from it. Ghana’s tourism sites are abundant and require massive investments in the sectors; public and private as well as the international world.

Some local entrepreneurs have been making efforts to encourage the spirit of local tourism in the country. The GTA has lined up a series of activities and the implementation of some policy directives that it hopes to leverage on to attract more tourists into the country and subsequently increase earnings from the sector.

The initiatives would include the maiden celebration of the country’s geographic location to the centre of the globe; possible disbursement of the tourism levy, which is one percent of a tourist’s expenditure at designated tourism facility; the completion of the restructuring of the authority and the passage of two legislative institutions that will further empower the authority to regulate and develop the sector.

As earlier mentioned, the potential for tourism in the country is huge, and after 57 years as an independent state, Ghana’s tourism has to move up the ladder to become the leading foreign exchange earner for the economy. The GTA must lead the way to market and sell the country’s tourism potential.

By: Konrad Kodjo Djaisi