TOURISM SECTOR IN NR GETS A BOOST (PAGE 20)

THE development of five tourist attractions located in and around the Mole National Park in the Northern Region has been boosted further with the injection of $250,000 into the sector by the Sustainable Tourism Eliminating Poverty (ST-EP) Foundation.
The attractions are located at Larabanga, Mognori, Sonyor, Kulmasa and the Mole Park itself. It is envisaged that about 2,400 people in the tourist attraction sites would directly benefit from the project.
In that regard, a Savannaland Destination Management Team (SDMT) has been inaugurated in Tamale to ensure effective implementation and monitoring of the project.
Giving an overview of the project, the Tourism Advisor of the Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV), Madam Cynthia Awuni, stated that ST-EP was providing funding for tourism development in the south-western parts of the Savannaland destination.
According to her, the ST-EP was a partnership of the World Tourism Organisation (WTO) and the SNV to help alleviate the poverty of a projected 20,000 people through direct employment and income earned in the tourism sector.
Madam Awuni stated that under the SDMT, the capacity of relevant stakeholders in planning and co-ordination of tourism development would, among other objectives, be strengthened.
She said the key implementing agencies were the Northern Regional Co-ordinating Council (RCC), West Gonja, Sawla-Tuna-Kalba and Bole District Assemblies.
The rest were the Mole National Park, the Ghana Tourist Board, beneficiary communities, the private sector, A. Rocha, Ghana and SNV.
Madam Awuni said the SDMT would help plan, facilitate and create an enabling environment for the beneficiary communities and the private sector to manage and invest in tourism.
The Project Manager of A. Rocha, Ghana, a non-governmental organisation, Mr Daryl Bosu, for his part, expressed optimism that access to tourism destination areas would be improved in the near future, as well as increase tourist arrivals to the destinations.
According to him, that would be achieved through investment in infrastructure stimulated by tourism and tax or levy on tourism income or profit proceeds benefiting the poor.
The Regional Minister, Alhaji Mustapha Ali Idris, observed, “This is a novelty initiative intended to market our tourism potential”.
He urged District Chief Executives to collaborate with the stakeholders to ensure effective implementation of the project.
Alhaji Idris stressed the need for the stakeholders to include traditional rulers and representatives of the security services in the management of the project to ensure its smooth implementation.
The Regional Manager of the Ghana Tourist Board (GTB), Mr William Ayambire, who lauded the project, said effective tourism development required a multi-sectoral approach.
The Bole District Chief Executive, Mr Jerry Yakubu Yahaya, commended the SNV for providing support to district assemblies in the region since 2005 for them to develop their tourism potentials.