THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
Saturday (11 March) was Ghana Day at the International Tourism Bourse (ITB) Berlin, the world’s largest travel trade exhibition. It was a day when the spotlight was shined on the West African country at the fair and Ghana did not disappoint as it put up a beautiful cultural show.
Hundreds of fair visitors besieged the Ghana Stand to watch a cultural display and enjoy tasty Ghanaian delicacies and, most importantly, to get first-hand information about the opportunities for leisure travel in the country.
Ghana’s Minister of Tourism, Arts & Culture, Mrs Catherine Abelema Afeku, was the chief hostess at the event. In a brief speech, she listed the factors favourable to Ghana as a tourist destination, including peace, security and the requisite infrastructure to move about in the country. Most important, of course, are the numerous tourist attractions which the country boasts of and the famed friendly dispositon of its people.
Minister Afeku also wooed investors at the event calling on them to take advantage of the attractive incentives offered by the Government of Ghana to invest in the tourism sector. She assured that her ministry was ready at all times to assist investors to do business in the country.
The minister said Ghana’s participation at the ITB 2017, which took place from 8 to 12 March, was to market the country as a competitive tourism destination in Africa and also attract foreign investors to the industry.
Industry experts say Ghanaian participation in this year’s fair would help encourage global tour operators and travel agents to highlight Ghana on their tour circuits.
They also explained that the fair afforded Ghana the opportunity to inform and sensitise investors about investment incentives and opportunities available in the tourism sector.
Moreover, the ITB was also an opportunity to conduct market research in competitive and generating markets.
Botswana was the official partner country of ITB Berlin 2017, which was attended by 10,000 companies and organisations from 187 countries that exhibited their products and services to around 180,000 visitors, including 120,000 trade visitors.
Victor Francis
