Accra, May 28, GNA - The Ministry of Tourism in partnership with the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre on Friday launched the International Tourism Investment Forum with the aim to boost and lift domestic and international tourism in Ghana.

The forum scheduled for July 26 to August 1, this year, at the Accra International Conference Centre would be under the theme "Ghana: Time to Explore the role of the investor in the tourism sector". The program would bring together over 500 delegates comprising government officials, policy makers, corporate executives, potential investors from both local and international markets to discuss issues concerning tourism and how to position Ghana as the preferred tourist destination.

Mr Kwabena Owusu Acheampong, Deputy Minister of Tourism, who launched the forum, said tourism was considered as the most promising sector of the national economy and a potentially high income earner for the country. He said tourism was multifaceted and that a conscious effort had to be made to tap its potentials in job creation, as well as reap benefits in income generation for all. Mr Acheampong said the forum would explore ways to improve access to Ghana, upgrade existing tourist facilities, services, and sites that would help develop new ones and enhance the internal infrastructure to support tourism.

The forum will review the institutional structures of tourism, including both the private and public sector organisations, and coordinate its mechanisms, tourism legislation and regulations, and tourism manpower planning and development, he said.

He added that the development of eco-tourism, the use of tourism to promote sustainable development and poverty reduction, as well as regional cooperation in developing and marketing tourism would also be reviewed. Mr Acheampong urged local investors to take advantage of the forthcoming forum and strike deals with international counterparts and partners in the tourism value-chain to enable the country to reap the expected benefits from the industry.

Nana Kofi Adjei Twinin, President of the Ghana Tourism Federation (GHATOF), said for the sector to become the leading foreign exchange earner and to create job opportunities and wealth for the people, there was the need for government to really discover the role of the investor in the industry.

Nana Twinin called on government to check bureaucracies, delays and frustrations investors go through during documentation to do business in the country, since investors would like to operate in a safe and congenial environment to maximize returns on their investments. He also appealed to government to expedite action on the passage of the Tourism Bill which would serve as a blue print for the accelerated growth of the sector.

Mr George Aboagye, Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, said the event would provide excellent networking opportunities to showcase the potentials in the industry. "At the end of the event, domestic and international tourism would be given the desired attention by all key players and collaborative efforts should be offered to the sector to ensure its full development" he added.