Accra, (Greater Accra) 4th May ?99,

Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, the First Lady, on Monday asked participants of the on-going WTO and ATA joint tourism conference to pay attention to the role of women in the development of tourism.

She made the call at a ribbon-cutting ceremony to open a trade show, bazaar and handicraft fair as part of the joint conference in Accra.

More than 50 local and international tour operators, travel and tour agencies, handicraft, jewelry and cloth designers are exhibiting at the fair which is meant to showcase products and tourism investment opportunities that abound in the participating countries.

Nana Konadu commended the leading role being played by women in both the conference and the fair saying it is a demonstration of the premium women place on the development of tourism.

"Your deliberations at this conference must, therefore, take into account roles that women should appropriately play in the development of tourism in Africa as we approach the new millennium," she said.

She congratulated women for their contribution and encouraged them to strive for greater heights in the industry.

"The dynamics of global competition demands that you should strive to improve upon the quality of product, service delivery and package to satisfy the customer."

Nana Konadu called on the participants to collaborate and forge partnerships that will strengthen and build their respective economies.

She expressed the hope that the fair would add value to the cultural, historical and ecological attractions for a sustainable tourism in Ghana.

Owuraku Amofa, Deputy Minister of Tourism, called on participants to gear the fair toward enhancing trade and investment within Africa and between Africa and the rest of the world.

He said such a focus would put Africa in a position to take full advantage of the opportunities offered by the WTO and secure a sound footing on the world tourism map.