Conference on COVID-19, tourism slated for Aug 25
A one-day conference to review the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on travel and tourism is to be held in Accra on Wednesday, August 25, 2021.
Organised by Earth Rights Ghana, an NGO, in partnership with the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), the conference is on the broad theme: “Sustaining Tourism Beyond COVID-19”.
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It will be held at the Accra Tourist Information Centre for a limited number of specially invited key stakeholders but will be zoomed live for virtual participation, especially by tourism authorities from other West African countries.
There will be presentations on the theme by the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, as policy makers, Ghana Tourism Authority, the regulator, the aviation and national revenue authorities, and the private sector, represented by the Ghana Tourism Federation and the Ghana Hotels Association.
It will provide the opportunity for the industry to brainstorm strategies for the way forward.
Background
Given the international travel bans that have affected more than 90 per cent of the global population and widespread restrictions on public gatherings and community mobility, tourism largely ceased in March 2020. The pandemic has significantly impacted every sector of the travel and tourism industry, namely airlines, transportation, hotels, restaurants, attractions, such as national parks, protected areas and cultural heritage sites, travel agencies and tour operators.
Figures released by the World Travel and Tourism Council indicate that the direct, indirect and induced impact of travel and tourism industry accounted for 10.3 per cent of the global GDP ($8.9 trillion) and 330 million jobs, or one in 10 jobs globally.
Ghana
As the tourist sector gets ready for revival, Ghana’s new Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture has set an ambitious target of increasing tourism earnings to $5 billion.
Among effective indicators for the realisation of this dream are a sound tourism infrastructure and the potential of tourism destinations to grow through the adoption of public policies or private initiatives.
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Against this backdrop, Earth Rights Ghana proposes that the government’s ambitious target will be realised only on the back of thorough and effective planning by policy makers, regulators, practitioners and other stakeholders; hence, the proposed one-day conference.
About Earth Rights
Earth Rights is a not-for-profit non-governmental organisation working in the tourism sector to ensure compliance with sustainable/responsible tourism, with particular emphasis on protecting the rights of eco-systems through eco-labelling.