The Ghana Tourism Authority says it will help hoteliers in the hospitality space to succeed especially as it pushes for its headline event ‘ December in GH’.
Ghana emerged as the first tourism destination in West Africa in 2023 owing to the country’s top-notch campaign to make Ghana the number one tourism destination in the world.
Following the successful hosting of “The Year of Return” and “Beyond the Year of Return”, industry players continue to roll – out more tourist attraction programmes.
The rebranding of Manna Heights Hotel and Conference Center over the weekend became one of such attempts to attract more tourists to Ghana.
Supported by the Ghana Hotels Association of Ghana, the rebranding is seen as an attempt to meet the expectations of the huge number of tourists expected in Ghana for the much talked about “December in GH”.
The Head of Public Relations at the Ghana Tourism Authority, Jones Nelson speaking at the relaunch in Accra noted,
“We are very much enthused to see such an initiative in the enterprises that we regulate. In this industry, you need to be proactive because you are into competition.
In 2023 we were the leading destination in West Africa which is a plus. The hospitality industry is a multi-faceted sector because we have all the sectors of the economy in there. We have the roads, agriculture and environment and if you travel as a tourist you will need transportation, hotels to lay your head and food to eat”.
President of the Ghana Hotels Association, Dr. Edward Ackah- Nyameke expressed worry over the high taxes which are stifling business growth.
He wants the incoming administration to consolidate all the various taxes into one service tax.
” We are lucky to have contributed to the manifestos of the NPP and NDC and fortunately one of them won so it’s a win – win situation for all of us. We want the NDC government to consolidate all the several taxes that we have pay into one simple tax at a level that the industry players would understand. Some countries call it service tax. So when you talk about VAT, NHIL, COVID tax, we want all of these to be consolidated into one tax that is conducive for business and I am sure the hotels will pay”.
“Manna Heights has been around for 30 years and today with the addition of the beach resort they have appropriately transformed themselves and are environmentally conscious which is good for our industry so I am happy for them”.
Head of Marketing and Sales at MHH&CC
Mathew Amoah is optimistic their new initiative would position them as the leading and largest conference hotel in the Central Region.
” The location of the hotel in Mankessim and Saltpond means you are leaving behind the hustle and stress in the city of Accra and the place is a sanctuary for tourists.
With over 2,000 conference capacity we are therefore the number one tourists destination in West Africa”. He stressed.
By Richard Bright Addo