Investment begins to pay off.

While gold remains Ghana's top export commodity and, in spite of depressed world prices in recent years, is the sector that attracts the most capital, another of Ghana's industries is proving just as valuable. Over the centuries, the sparkle of gold has been Ghana's luring force but the hospitality of the people has shone no less brightly.

From the time merchant ships began to dock on Ghana's shores in search of the gold, visitors have been in awe of the incredible beauty of the country and the infectious warmth of its people.

Today Ghana is becoming increasingly popular as a holiday destination. The attraction is double-headed: the endless beaches, lush rain forests and unique estuaries are an eco-tourist's dream, while the rich heritage draws visitors from all over the world - from African Americans in search of their roots to history enthusiasts wanting to explore the chilling past of a country ravaged by the slave trade.

After years of letting the untapped potential of the industry lie dormant, Ghana is starting to invest in tourism - and making excellent returns. Earnings from this sector are slowly but surely catching up with income from gold. Last year gold brought in $687.8m while tourism earned $283.96m, making it the third highest foreign revenue earner behind gold and cocoa. The outlook for this year is even brighter. Earnings from tourism are expected to top $300m from tourist arrivals totalling about 400,000.

The airlines have been the quickest to respond to the tourism boom. From the once-a-week flight by a handful of international airlines 10 years ago, most major international airlines now make five flights to Ghana every week. These include KLM, Swissair, British Airways, Luftansa, Ethiopia Airlines and American Airlines. So intense is the competition for the Ghanaian destination now that the airlines are locked in a bitter price war. Airfares have tumbled in the process.

The Ghana Civil Aviation Authority has responded to the boom in air traffic by modernising and expanding its facilities. Last year, international airport inspectors pronounced Accra's international airport one of the safest in the world. A complete 'airport village' complex is being built around the main airport. This will house a five-star airport hotel complex, a shopping complex, office blocks and carports. Local and foreign investors have responded enthusiastically with bids to pre-finance some of the construction. After completion of the face-lift, Accra airport will join the ranks of the world's modern airports.

Plans are also afoot to build a second international airport in Kumasi, Ghana's second largest city, situated in the centre of the country. This will take the strain off Accra and facilitate cargo and passenger service to the central and northern parts of Ghana.

The Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) is currently among the most profitable companies in Ghana. Chief executive officer Andy Mensah, who has been in charge of reforms for 10 years, has received national and international commendation for pragmatic leadership. The GCAA, having hived off most of its commercial activities to private entrepreneurs, is focusing on improving facilities and directing new developments. A modern cargo village is being run by British cargo-handling firm AFGO.

In line with the official open-door policy, the GCAA is in the process of adopting an Open Skies Policy to attract more landings in Accra. The policy will make it cheaper and bureaucratically less cumbersome for aircraft to land in Accra.

Slowest off the mark

The slowest off the blocks in the race for the Ghanaian tourist dollar are the top hotels. There are 10,879 hotel rooms in Ghana providing 14,289 beds in 730 hotels. There are three four-star hotels and 14 three-star hotels. Together the top three hotels have only 519 beds between them. With an average occupancy rate of 72.60% there's hardly room for large executive conferences. For instance, when Ghana hosted the African-African American Summit in Accra in May, the newest addition to the big-name hotels, LA Palm Royal Hotel, was pressured to complete a new wing of its hotel for visiting African leaders and ministers.

All the top hotels have to be booked well in advance for large conferences. It is alleged that President Clinton, during his African tour last year, wished to spend the night in Accra but could not find enough top-quality rooms to accommodate his 600-plus entourage conveniently. He chose Kampala as his first rest stop.

Yet conference tourism has been on the rise in Ghana. Ghana's political stability and its strides in multi-party democracy have marked it as the ideal conference venue for most sub-regional international conferences. This year the World Tourism Organisation and the African Tourism Association held their annual meetings jointly in Accra. This was closely followed by Reverend Leon Sullivan's African African-American Summit. Both events demanded top class hotel accommodation in good numbers.

Clearly there is an urgent need for more top class hotel accommodation in Accra and Kumasi if the goal set by the National Tourism Plan for Ghana (1996-2010) is to succeed. The World Tourism Organisation (WTO) projects that by 2010 one million tourists arrivals will be achieved, generating $1.5bn annually. It is an ambitious target, but tourism authorities think the country is on course to reach that goal.

A human resource development and training policy has reached an advanced stage of implementation. Industry standards and regulations to ensure quality standards in service delivery are being vigorously pursued.

A proposal for the establishment of a tourism development fund to support local enterprises is also under consideration. This is to ensure the adequate participation of indigenous enterprises in tourism development. An assessment of infrastructural needs, such as roads, airports and utility services has been planned to benefit tourism and other vital sectors of the economy such as agriculture, mining, industry and commerce.

The participation of various stakeholders in tourism - the public and private sectors, academics, non-governmental organisations and local communities in decision-making and planning - has created a positive and enabling environment for the development and promotion of the industry.

Environmental success story

A typical success story is that of Kakum National Park (see page 62), a 350-square-kilometre timber concession in the Central Region of Ghana, which has been effectively developed to preserve the hundreds of species of indigenous flora and fauna.

This park has attracted over 100,000 domestic and international visitors since its establishment in 1991 and generated almost $500,000 in receipts. It has also provided employment opportunities and cultural and scientific exchange experiences beneficial to both the host community and visitors.

Several other sites in Ghana are responding to this sustainable nature-based tourism product development. These include Lake Bosumtwi, a 10km meteorite crater lake located in the Ashanti Region (the cultural hub of Ghana's tourism); the Mole National Park, a 500-square-kilometre savanna park in the Northern Region which boasts a diversity of flora and fauna; the Volta lake estuary with its mangrove vegetation, thousands of migratory birds, game fish and sea turtles; and the Baubeng-Fiema Monkey Sanctuary where the local community are extremely protective of the monkeys which co-inhabit the area.

"Our objective is to achieve the distinguishing characteristics of sustainable environmental or nature-based tourism, which places great emphasis on the host communities as well as tourists. The dual purpose of conserving the natural areas and providing economic opportunities for the surrounding communities can be accomplished if the correct techniques are strictly adhered to," says Fianko.

Cultural heritage

Deputy Secretary-General of the WTO, Dr David de Villiers recently maintained that the future of African tourism lies in its cultural heritage, despite the dissenting view of some experts that tourism development would pose a threat to the protection of the cultural and natural environment.

Exploring new cultures is one of the motivating factors which makes people travel and the African continent is characterised by the diversity and wealth of its cultural heritage. The legacy of ancient traditional customs handed down from generation to generation which are so much part of the African way of life constitute a unique opportunity for the traveller.

Ghana recently witnessed what is perhaps one of the greatest cultural events of this millennium - the funeral of the late Otumfuo Opoku Ware II and the coronation of His The Ash Royal Highness Otumfau Osei Tutu II, both kings of the Ashanti Kingdom, which has been proclaimed a World Heritage Institution by UNESCO.

A pan-African Festival of Arts and Culture (Panafest), which was established to showcase Africa's culture on a biennial basis, will enter its fourth year in July.

Efforts are also being made to calendarise the numerous cultural festivals in the country to enable the Ghana Tourist Board to market these products to the international community. Already, major festivals involving the Fante (Fetu Afahye), Akwapim (Odwira), Ga (Homowo), Ewe (Hogbetsotso) and Krobo (Asafotufiam) ethnic groups are well known and attract a good number of tourists, both local and international.

A winning combination

Sustainable resource development requires management of the environment so that it is not degraded or destroyed, but is available for both present and future use.

"Ours is a win-win option to advance multiple national objectives including the generation of foreign exchange, expansion of employment opportunities for the rural poor and depressed urban settings and also to help provide funding for natural and cultural heritage preservation.

"This we must do through conservation of important natural areas, restoration and preservation of historical sites, improvement of local infrastructure, and finally community involvement in tourism development to reduce negative socio-cultural impacts as well as to spread socio-economic benefits of tourism," says Owusu Fianko.

RELATED ARTICLE: A fine balance

Speaking at the World Tourism Organisation (WTO) and African Travel Association (ATA) joint meeting in Accra in May, Ghana Tourist Board executive director Doreen Owusu Fianko said that Africa is the fastest growing tourism region in the world. Last year international arrivals went up by an impressive 7.5%.

This growth, she said, was spurred by solid increases in nature-based tourism in southern Africa and cultural heritage tourism in the northern African region. Statistics show that of the 630m tourists who travelled world-wide in 1998, 25m visited Africa. Fianko predicts that the number of African visitors will increase to 75m by 2000.

In Ghana, tourism currently provides 360,000 direct and indirect jobs. While direct employment in tourism is relatively limited, the multiplier effect of 3.5% and strong growth in tourism are indicative of the employment possibilities for the industry and its potential poverty reducing effects.

These indicators confirm the belief that current and future travel trends favour destinations which can offer unique natural and cultural heritage experiences or ecotourism.

Africa, the cradle of mankind and nature's store house, with its wide diversity of vibrant ethnic cultures expressed in a multitude of customs and traditions, has a tremendous potential to become the major tourism destination for the new millennium.

Africa is also exceptionally rich in visual arts, drama and dance performances, textile fashions, costumes, architecture, exotic cuisine, indigenous institutions and colourful festivals.

"Our major concerns, however, are the many difficult, urgent and extremely challenging problems of positively reducing poverty while protecting and preserving the natural and cultural environment," said Fianko.

Sustainable development

To address these concerns, Ghana has sought technical and financial assistance from the WTO and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) respectively and has evolved a strategy to develop tourism resources on a sustainable basis to ensure a more humane, equitable and enduring development of its communities.

This strategy is contained in a 15-year Integrated Tourism Development Programme (1996-2010). Essentially, the programme has an overall policy framework for sustainable development and a master plan establishing priority development zones with clear regulations and carrying capacities.