Accra, June 5, GNA - The Minister of Tourism and Diasporan Relations, Mrs Oboshie Sai Cofie, has urged Ghana and Ivory Coast to collaborate effectively to benefit from the tourism potential of each country. Speaking during a brief working visit to the Ivorian city of Abidjan last week to attend Ghana Day at a Tourism and Cultural Expos=E9, she said: "Our geographic, historical and cultural proximity and nearness mean that our two countries can benefit greatly from tourists who visit either country." She invited her counterpart and officials of the Ivorian Ministry of Tourism to collaborate with Ghana to ensure that the two countries took advantage of the integration of the sub-region, and also of their peoples and similar cultures to attract visitors from one country into the other, and also attract tourists who visited one country into the other.

An official statement said the event, which was organized by a private hotelier, and facilitated by Mr Kabral Blay-Amihere, Ghana's Ambassador to Ivory Cote Ivoire, showcased Ghanaian culture and artifacts among other things from Ghana. As part of the programme of activities, Mrs Sai Cofie and her delegation were taken round to see some of the tourist attractions in the Assini and Grand Bassam areas. She said: " One of the reasons for accepting the invitation to come here is to see what is done here and create working links with the tourism authorities here so that any partnership or collaboration would be mutual."