TouristMapofGhana

TableofContents

AboutGhana............................................................................................ i WelcomeStatement............................................................................... ii WhatisTourism?.................................................................................... 1 TourisminGhana:Facts&Figures..........................................................2 Strengths,Weaknesses,OpportunitiesandThreats ...............................3 TourisminWestAfrica............................................................................ 5 Highlights................................................................................................ 6 Vision,Mission,GoalsandObjectives ....................................................7 HowCanWeAchieveourTargetofOneMillionTouristsby2012?.......8 TheCriticalSuccessFactors.................................................................... 9 ActionPlan............................................................................................ 16 MonitoringandEvaluationMechanisms..............................................18 Glossary................................................................................................. 19

AboutGhana
FORMERNAME:TheGoldCoast. CAPITAL:Accra. LOCATION:WesternAfrica,onlatitude 800'Nandlongitude200'W. BORDERS:AtlanticOcean(south),Togo (east),BurkinaFaso(north)andLaCte dIvoire(west). SURFACEAREA:238,837sqkm(similarto GreatBritainortheAmericanstateof Oregon),with540kmofcoastline. CLIMATE:Tropical,withtemperaturesusually between2131C. NATURALRESOURCES:Gold,Diamond,Bauxite,Manganese,TimberandCocoa. POPULATION:Approximately23.8millionpeople. LANGUAGE:OfficiallanguageisEnglish.Therearemorethan70languagesandmajor dialects,includingAkan,Ewe,GaAdangbe,Dagbani,NzemaandHausa. RELIGION:TwothirdsofGhanaiansareChristian,another15%areIslamic,andthe remainderadheretotraditionalanimistbeliefs. GOVERNMENT:ConstitutionalDemocracy. INDEPENDENCE:6thMarch1957fromBritishAdministration. LOCALTIME:GreenwichMeanTime(GMT).

Welc comeStatement
Ghanas ric ch heritage, her nat turally hospitable pe eople and her comm mitment to democra atic governance has made her a peaceful, secure an nd politically stable e country. In terms of popularity, ,GhanaranksthirdafterNigeriaandSenegalintheWestAf fricanSubRegion.This T notwithsta anding,Ghanaisnotknownasatouristd destination. Something gisnotgoingright:Ghana G hasnotbeenabletorealiseherfu ullpotentialintourism developme ent. Two obvious re easons for this are o our lack of a marke eting strategy, and our o lackofawa arenessoftheimpor rtanceoftourismto oGhanaandGhanaia ans. Thetourism msectorisan importantcontributorto Ghanaseconomicdevelopment. d In200 08, an estimat ted 1.4 billion US dollars d was realised d from the tourism sector, making it the t fourth high hest foreign exchange earner after gold d, cocoa and remittances from Ghanaia ans resident ab broad. In the same year, y 234,679 jobs w were created (direct tly or indirectly) by the t tourismse ector. When well planned, tourism can c be a viable tool for environmental conservation and the t preservatio on of local cultures. Tourism can also induce central and local governments to makenece essaryinfrastructure eimprovementsinho ostcommunities. ItisagainstthisbackdropthatIampersonallyhap ppyaboutthisNationalTourismMarketing Strategy, which w I consider the road map for impro oving the marketing of Ghana, enabling us totakeour rrightfulplaceasthenumberonetouris stdestinationinWe estAfrica. Imustcaut tion,however,thathavingastrategyinplace,andimpleme entingthestrategy,are a two differe ent things. On my part, p I will ensure that government gets more committed in allocating resources for implementation. I ther refore urge our pa artners, especially the t ctor,toalsoshowco ommitmentbysuppo ortingtheimplemen ntationofthestrateg gy. privatesec IwishGhanaasuccessfulmark ketingdrive.

N)JULIANAAZUMAHMENSAH MRS.(HON Ministerof fTourism

ii

WhatisTourism?
Tourism comprises the activities of persons travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment, for a period of not more than one consecutive year, for leisure, business and other purposes not related to the exercise of an activity remunerated from withintheplacevisited. The tourism industry can be defined as those firms, organisations and facilities that incidentally or intentionally provide facilities and services for tourists, to cater for their needsfromthetimeofplanningfortheirtrip,totheirreturnhome. The tourism industry is one of the largest industries in the world, comprising 924 million international tourists in 2008, and accounting for 30% of the worlds exports of services. GlobaltourismgeneratedUS$856billion(625billion)inrevenues,in2007.

Globaltourismisforecasttocontinuetogrowinthelongterm,thoughataslowerpacefor 2009,duetothecurrentglobaleconomicdownturn.However,thegoodnewsisthatAfrica, as well as East Asia and the Pacific, the rest of Asia, and the Middle East, will have higher growthpercentagesthantherestoftheworld.

TourisminGhana:Facts&Figures
StructureoftheIndustry The Ministry of Tourism (MOT) is the policymakingbodyforGhanastourismindustry, with its implementing agency being the Ghana Tourist Board (GTB). The Ghana Tourism Federation(GHATOF)istheumbrellaassociation for private sector tourism organisations and theiraffiliates. TourismsContributiontotheGhanaianEconomy The tourism industry contributes greatly to the Ghanaian economy, through such means as corporate tax, income tax, value added tax, National Health Insurance Levies, customs/excise duties, GTB licence fees, property rates, property/asset fees, business registrationfees,visa/workpermits,airportservicecharges,andsoon. Between 2005 and the third quarter of 2008, the hotel sector had contributed GH 647,296,664.15 directly to government revenue, and GH 35,011,773.43 to non governmental/quasigovernmental agencies. During the same period, the restaurant sector contributed GH 28,129,876.26 directly to government revenue, and GH1,888,216.42 to nongovernmental/quasigovernmentalagencies. ShareoftheWestAfricanTourismMarket In 2004, Ghana had its highest ever visitor arrival figures, amounting to 584,000 visitors in thatyear.However,thisfiguremustbedoubledwithinthreeyears,ifwearetoachieveour target of attracting one million visitors to Ghana by mid2012. This requires an increase of GhanasshareofWestAfricantouristsfrom12%to20%,bymid2012. By targeting visitors from the UK, Germany, USA, The Netherlands and Nigeria, and by the active involvement of all at large, we need to increase our marketing efforts and close the wideninggapbetweenGhanaandSenegal,sothatGhanamayeventuallybethetoptourist destinationinWestAfrica.

Strengths,Weaknesses, OpportunitiesandThreats
GhanasStrengthsasaTourismDestination: Authenticandunspoiled. Strongculturalandheritagetourismproducts. Natureandecotourism. Safeandsecure. Plentyofsunshine. Highsatisfactionratingbyvisitors. Friendlypeople. Anglophonecountry. Wellconnectedflightnetwork. Developingtelecommunications. Politicalstability.

GhanasWeaknessesasaTourismDestination: LackofactivepromotionofGhanaasatouristdestination. Lackofintegratedchannelstrategy. Poorvisaregime. Pooronlinestrategy. Littletouristinformation. Nointernationalinformationoffices(SenegalhasoneinNewYork). Poorinfrastructure(especiallydomesticandinternationaltransportation,roads,rest stops,andtouristinformationoffices). Poorproductqualityandlowexcitementoverproductsandservices. Lackofserviceandprofessionaltourismorientation. Inadequateaccommodationfacilities. Highpricesrelativetoquality.

OpportunitiesfacingGhanaasaTourismDestination: Worldwidetrendtowardsspecialinterestandadventuretourism. IncreasinginterestonthepartofAfricanAmericansintheirheritage. TouristpotentialfromWestAfricanneighbourssuchasNigeria. Currentlyabestkeptsecret:noestablishedimageontheworldtourismmarket. Attractivetobusinesstravellersduetolocationandsafety(potentialconference market). AnestimatedfourmillionGhanaianslivingabroad. ThreatsfacingGhanaasaTourismDestination: IncreasingcompetitionfromotherAfricancountriesasemergingtourism destinations. HighcostoftraveltoGhana. Lackofappreciationoftourismsimportancebygovernmentandsocietyalike. Increasingworldwidesecurityconcernsaboutoverseastravel. NegativeassociationswithqualitiesgenerallyassociatedwithAfrica(famine,disease, poverty,instability). Globalfinancialcrisis.

TourisminWestAfrica
It is expected that Africa will have an additional 27 million visitors by 2010, and 57 million visitors by 2020. We therefore have a good opportunity to grow Ghanas share of African touristarrivals. Currently, out of the four subregional blocs in Africa (northern, southern, eastern and western), West Africa has the smallest share of visitors. Though West Africa seems to have lagged behind in attracting visitors compared to other African regional blocs, this might present the countries in the West African subregion with an opportunity to market themselvesasvirginandunspoilttouristdestinations. Thecurrentglobalfinancialcrisisstillcallsforcaution,sincemanyhouseholdsmaycutback on travel spending. However, in the more developed countries, holidays are considered essential. Research suggests that the economic downturn will have less of an impact on holidaygrowththanonotherareasofconsumerspending.

Highl lights
Ghana is one o of approximate ely 200 countries an nd territories in the world. With so ma any destination ns to choose from, tourists are spoilt for choice. The cha allenge is how we can c increase our o tourism market ting efforts to max ximise our share of o tourist arrivals and a revenue. Wehavecome c torealisethatwiththecurrentqualityofourtourismproductsandservices, wecannot tadequatelycompet teagainstalltouristdestinations:assuc ch,wehavedecidedto measure our o tourism perform mance against our W West African compet titors, namely Seneg gal, TheGambia,Mali,BeninandSierra S Leone. Wenowco onsiderSenegal,the emostdevelopedto ouristmarketinWes stAfrica,tobeGhanas primaryco ompetitor. Ghana will l henceforth be pos sitioned on the basis s of the diversity of f her tourism offerin ngs andthewa armthofherpeople. The prima ary objective is to o attract one million visitors to Ghana by mid2012 2, mainly from the U UK, Germany, USA (AfricanAmericans) and Nigeria, b but also from Ghanaians living abroad, as well as Ghanaians sandexpatriateslivinginGhana. This requir res that we develop p our tourism products and service es; inform and educ cate the public; build d a reputation n as a must see tourism destination in West Afri ica; and improve accessibility to t the country.

Vision,Mission,GoalsandObjectives

Vision ThevisionisforGhanaistobethetourismhotspotofWestAfrica. Mission ThemissionistooutperformSenegalasthetourismhotspotinWestAfrica. StrategicGoals The primary goal is to differentiate Ghana from the competitor countries in West Africa. Thesecondarygoalsareasfollows: 1. To position Ghana as an eclectic must see destination that offers diverse tourism opportunitiesinWestAfrica 2. ToraiseawarenessofGhanaasatouristdestination 3. To improve the knowledge of Ghana among international tour operators and packageholidaycompanies 4. To educate Ghanaians living in Ghana about tourism products and tourisms potential 5. To encourage Ghanaians in the diaspora to visit Ghana and invite their friends to alsovisitGhana. StrategicObjectives The primary objective is to increase Ghanas share of West African tourists from 12% to 20%bymid2012. Thesecondaryobjectivesare: 1. ToincreasethenumberoftouroperatorsthatofferpackagestoGhana 2. ToIncreasetheaverageexpenditureoftourists 3. Toimprovethegeographicspreadoftourists 4. Toincreasethelengthofstayoftourists 5. Tosmoothenseasonaldemand 6. Toincreasethepropensitytorecommendtofriends 7. Toincreaseloyalty,measuredthroughrepeatvisits.

HowCanWeAchieveourTargetofOne MillionTouristsby2012?
Our target of one million tourists by 2012 can be realised if we try to capitalise on our strengths, minimise our weaknesses, seize our opportunities, and overcome the threats. In particular,effortsmustbefocusedonthefollowingareas: AccessibilityofTourismSites AttendanceatInternationalExhibitions DevelopmentofaCrisisCommunicationsStrategy DevelopmentofAirlines,NationalandRegionalAirports DevelopmentofHumanResourcesinTourism DevelopmentofIntegratedandConsistentMarketing Communications EducatingtheLocalHumanResources EnhancedLinkswithInternationalTourOperatorsandPackageHolidayWebsites EstablishmentofTouristInformationOffices ExploitationofTechnology HeightenedPublicRelationsEfforts ImprovedAwarenessinKeySourceCountries ImprovedDirectMarketing ImprovedPackagingofTours ImprovedQualityandPricingofHotels ImprovedTouristAttractions OfferingBetterValueforMoney SimplerandCheaperVisaRegime UseofGuerrillaPromotionalMethods.

TheCriticalSuccessFactors

ThecriticalsuccessfactorsforachievingthegoalssetoutinthisStrategyareasfollows: 1. ProductImprovementandDevelopment AccessibilityofTourismSites Althoughprogresshasbeenmadeinthelasttenyearswiththe constructionofroads,theaccesstoandfrommanytouristsites outsidemajorcitiesremainspoor.Thislackofaccess significantlydiminishesthebenefitstothelocalcommunitiesof theirtourismproducts.Theresultisthatthosethatare accessibleareovervisited,withtheriskofenvironmental degradation,whileothersarehardlyvisited.Railandwater transportremainunderdevelopedinGhana. DevelopmentofAirlines,NationalandRegionalAirports ThepopulartouristdestinationsincludingSouthAfricaandKenyaallseemtohave strongnationalairlinesthatservetheircountries,complementedbyinternationalairlines. InemergingdestinationssuchasGhana,internationalairlinesdominate,supportedby weakernationalcarriers. ThenumberandfrequencyofflightscomingintoGhanahasimproved,withincreasingsub regionalflightactivity,especiallytoandfromNigeria.ThoughmajorEuropeancarrierslike BritishAirwaysandKLMflydailytoGhana,thisisonlytoAccra,withnoflightstoother majorcitieslikeKumasiorTakoradi.AirlineslikeAlitaliaandEmiratescombineflightsto NigeriaandGhana,probablytoboostrevenuespermile.Thisisunderstandable,butit createstheperceptionthatGhanaisnotasaccessibleasotherpopularAfricandestinations likeSouthAfricaorKenya.

Presently,thevisitorexperienceatKotokaInternational Airportisamixedone.Staffattheairport,includingthe immigrationofficials,arepleasantandprofessional,but informationisscarce,andairportamenitiessuchaswashroom facilitiesarebelowpar. ImprovedPackagingofTours Toursneedtobepackagedtoreflecteclecticexperience,andtour operatorsmustbeencouragedtodevelopinterestingnamesfor theirtours. ImprovedQualityandPricingofHotels Thereisaneedformorereasonablypriced,goodquality hotelsacrossthecountry,beforeGhanacancomparewith herregionalrivals,notablySenegal. Inaddition,theratingcriteriaforhotelsandrestaurants shouldbereviewedtoreflecttodaysbusinessenvironment. ImprovedTouristAttractions Touristattractionsneedtobeimprovedtomakethemmore engagingandinteresting.Thepresentationofthetourist attractionslikethecastlesshouldbemademoreengagingand memorable,perhapsthroughdramatisation. OfferingBetterValueforMoney WithGhanaiansbeingfriendlypeople,touristshaveagood experienceinGhana.However,thepresentationofthe tourismproducts(sitesandattractions)isthoughttobe boringanduninspiring.Hotelsandrestaurantsarebeing improved,buttherearestillissuesaboutprice,qualityand servicedelivery.VisitorstoWestAfricabelievethat tourismserviceshereareexpensive,comparedtothe qualityofservicereceived.

SimplerandCheaperVisaRegime Senegalsvisafeesrangefrom3.15to10.50forvisasforoneto ninetydays.Mostvisasareprocessedwithinthreeworkingdays. CitizensofEUmemberstates,Canada,Israel,Japan,Taiwanandthe UnitedStates,donotrequireavisaforavisitofuptoninetydays.In contrast,visastoGhanacost30forasingleentry,andtake betweenfourandtenworkingdaystoprocess. Governmentshouldbelobbiedtoeasevisarequirements:ifnot completely(whichwouldhaverevenueimplicationsfortheaffected highcommissions),thenanalternativecouldbetoletvisitorspay fortheirvisasonarrivalinGhana.Thatway,accessisfacilitated,visitornumberswill increase,andtouroperatorswillhaveonebighassletakencareof. Attheintergovernmentallevel,theideaofaWestAfricanSchengenequivalentshouldbe putforward,toboostregionaltouristtraffic. 2. InformationandCommunicationsTechnology(ICT) ExploitationofTechnology InGhana,theuseofICTamongstindustryplayers tendstoberestrictedtowordprocessing.The exploitationoftheinternetandrelatedtechnologies isstillrelativelylow.Mostplayersdonothave websitesoronlinebookingplatforms,andtheyare thereforecutofffromtheglobalsupplychain. However,halfofallinternetusersworldwidebrowse travelrelatedwebsitesforinformation. Withincreasingaccesstobroadband,itiseasierfortravellerstosearchforinformation aboutdestinations,booktheirtrips,andpostfeedbackonline.Onlinebookinghasdoubled inthelastfouryears.TotalonlinetravelsalesintheUKareestimatedat10.8billion.Inthe US,totalonlinesaleswereworth$114.6in2004.Theinternetisbecomingamajor distributionchannelfortravelrelatedproductsandservices. Thelargerthenumberofindustryorganisationsthatareonline,thebettertheperception oftheaccessibilityofadestination.HereinGhana,weneedapolicytoencouragethe operatorsofhotelsandrelatedorganisationstohavewebsites.Deadlinesneedtobesetfor hotels,restaurants,carrentalcompaniesandthelike,todeveloptheirwebsitesandother

electronicproducts.PayPalisaverypopularpaymentplatformthatoffersany organisationswebsiteecommercecapability. Onlineinitiativesshould includetheuseofvideosonYouTubeandrelevanttravelwebsites. Travelblogs should be maintained, so that visitors can share their experiences. Banner ads shouldbeplacedonrelevantwebsitessuchasexpedia.comandlastminute.com. We also need robust marketing information systems to help with the collection, analysis and dissemination of market intelligence for decisionmaking. This is especially important whenitcomestotheallocationofscarceresources. 3. Marketing AttendanceatInternationalExhibitions Attendanceatinternationaltourismexhibitionsiscritical forthecompetitivenessofGhanastourism.Exhibitionsin themajorsourcemarkets(forexample,ITBandWTM) shouldbegiveninvestmentpriority,andthecostof attendingexhibitionsmustalwaysbeweighedagainstthe likelylongtermbenefits. DevelopmentofIntegratedandConsistentMarketingCommunications MarketingcommunicationsmustensurethatGhanaisrecognisedasabrand,andthat GhanaisperceivedasdistinctfromtheothercompetingdestinationsinWestAfrica.All effortsshouldbemadetoensurethatallmarketing communicationsareintegrated,todisseminatea consistentmessageandthusavoidtheerrorsof pastinitiativeswheretheretendedtobedifferent messagesforeverycampaign. Therecommendedpromotionalmethodsare: LocalTVadvertising Localnewspaperandmagazineadvertising Local road and pedestrian signage (with universal features) directing visitors to touristattractionsandshowingdistancestoattractions Internationalandlocaloutdooradvertising.

EnhancedLinkswithInternationalTourOperatorsandPackage HolidayWebsites Touristdestinationsthathavestrongrelationshipswithlarge internationaltouroperatorstendtoperformbetterthanthose whodonot. The number of tour operators and package holiday websites that feature Ghana is very low. This makes it difficult for tourists to accessthemarket,asnooneisreallysellingthecountry. WemustincreasethenumberoftouroperatorsthatofferpackagestoGhana,andimprove the knowledge of Ghana among international tour operators and package holiday companies. EstablishmentofTouristInformationOffices Inordertoincreasevisibilityandprovideinformationwithapersonaltouch,wemusthave touristinformationofficesacrossGhanaandinthemajorsourcecountries.Thesecanbe complementedbytouristinformationdesksmannedbywellqualifiedpersonnelinthe variousGhanaHighCommissions. ImprovedAwarenessinKeySourceCountries WemustbuildGhanasreputationasamustseetourist destinationinWestAfrica.ThefourmillionGhanaiansinthe diasporamustbeencouragedtovisitGhanaandinvitetheir friendstoalsovisitGhana. Ghanashouldbemarketedasa destinationthatoffersdiverse opportunitiesforthetourist. Thiswillhelptoincrease averagetouristspendpervisit, averagelengthofvisit,and loyalty(measuredbyrepeatvisits). Inviewofthis,thecampaignlogoandcatchphraseadoptedis
Culture,WarmthandMuchMore,

brandedaccordingly.

completedwiththestripeofGhana colours.Allpromotionalitemsmustbe

ImprovedDirectMarketing Touristinformationshouldbemadeavailablethroughprofessionallyproducedleafletsand brochures.Thesealsomustbeavailableonlinefordownloads.Allimagesusedonwebsites, brochures,leafletsandallpromotionalmaterialsshouldbetakenbyprofessional photographers.Thewebsitesshouldbedevelopedtoincludefeaturesthatcanenablethe captureofcontactdetailsforsubsequentemailmarketingandrelationshipbuilding. UseofGuerrillaPromotionalMethods GhanaianfootballerswhoplayfortopEuropeanclubsshouldbe persuadedtowearVisitGhanatshirtsundertheirstrips.These canbemadevisibleaftermatches.Onandoffthepitch,they canwearGhanamemorabilia,likewristbands,etc.Thiscan generatealotofPRinEurope,ifitispickedupbythepress. 4. PublicRelations DevelopmentofaCrisisCommunicationsStrategy Theremustbeacrisiscommunicationsstrategyinplace, shouldanythingbadhappentotourists.Ourresponseto criseswilleitherimproveordiminishtouristconfidence.A publicrelationsfirmshouldhelpplanforsuch eventualities. HeightenedPublicRelationsEfforts PublicRelationsshouldbeusedtoensurethatpositivemessages areseededinrelevantinternationaltravelmedia.Familiarisation visitsshouldbeorganisedfortraveljournaliststoexplorethesights andsoundsofGhana,withpriorityplacedonthosejournalistsfrom targetsourcecountries,andresearchersfromcompaniesthat publishtravelguidessuchasLonelyPlanet. Local journalists should also be encouraged to research and report positive tourism stories, as a costeffective means of information dissemination. Local journalists should also be encouraged to develop competences in travel writing. A suggestion would be to create a category for traveljournalismintheannualtourismawards,aswellasjournalismawards. Regular destination news should be written and circulated to internet news sites as well as traditionalmedia,tokeepGhanatopofmind.

5. EducationandTraining DevelopmentofHumanResourcesinTourism ThequalityofGhanashumanresourcesintourismisstill poor.Manytourismestablishmentsstillhirerelativeswithno knowledgeorexperienceindealingwithtourists.Thisdilutes thetotalvisitorexperience,andhurtsthedestinationbrand. Training can help increase the average spend per tourist, as service staff are trained on how to encourage guests to spendmore. Industrywide training interventions should be implemented, and evidence of training and developmentshouldbeincludedinthecriteriafortherenewalofoperatinglicenses. Continuous professional development must be encouraged, perhaps through partnerships withinternationalorganisations. Continuous training of frontline staff at various tourist touch points must be seen as priority. All staff at various information points must have the necessary training to communicate the right product information with the right attitude. They must be helpful and professional: this will help reinforce the tourists perception of Ghana as a friendly destination,andenrichtheirholidayexperience. EducatingtheLocalHumanResources Therearecurrentlyabout38%ofGhanaiansunder theageof14.Thispresentsanopportunityto educatetheyoungergenerationontheimportance oftourismtoGhana,andhelpthemdevelopa mindsetthatseestheconnectionbetween tourism,nationaldevelopmentandenvironmental sustainability. Ghanaians living in Ghana must be educated about our tourism products and tourisms potential.

ActionPlan
KeyIssues 2.Ghananeedsto buildthebrandinside (withnationwideintegratedcampaigntoinformand 1.Ghananeedstodevelopitstourismproposition(productimprovementanddevelopment). educatethepublicabouttheeconomicbenefitsof tourismanditscontributiontonationaldevelopment). Activity Developreceptivefacilitiesforusebytravellers. Enforcelawonestablishingandmakingplacesofconvenienceaccessibleat reststopsontourismroutes. Trainstaffattheentrypointsoncustomercareandtheimportanceof tourism. Installmoderntoiletfacilitiesatalltouristattractions,airportsandborder posts. Installtouristsignagetodirecttouriststoattractions,usinginternational symbolsandcolours. Providedisposalbinsatallattractions,toensurethatthesitesarekeptclean. Developproposalstomakethetouristattractionsmoreexciting. Conductresearchanddevelopmentintootherattractionsthatdeservetobe includedinthedirectoryofworldheritagesites. Improvecapacityformonitoringandevaluatingtourismdevelopmentby establishingrobustinformationsystems. Conducttraining,anddevelopneedsassessmentfortheentireindustry. Developtrainingpolicyfortheindustry Developminimumrequirementsfordifferentjobpositions,ensuringthatthis becomesarequirementfortherenewaloflicenses,sothatserviceproviders havetherequisiteprofessionalbackgrounds. Coordinatetrainingoftourismpersonnel.Thiswillincludeinhousetraining, externaltraining(leadingtorecognisedqualificationssuchasdiplomasfrom theConfederationofTourismandHospitality),targetedskills,workshops, conferences,etc. EstablishaHumanCapitalMonitoringDepartmentwithinGTBorMOTto monitorthedevelopmentofthehumanresourceswithintheindustry. Appointcommitteetosourceforcommunicationsagenciestoundertakethe internalmarketingcommunicationsofGhanastourismproposition. Sourceandshortlistagencies. Briefagencies,andholdpitchingsessions. Appointandbrieftheselectedagency. Developamultimediaintegratedcommunicationsprogramme. MakeaninterimpresentationtoGTB/GHATOF. Finalisetheapprovaloftheinternalcommunicationscampaign. Rollouttheinternalcommunicationscampaign. Conducttourismoutreachprogrammesatprimary,JHSandSHSschools. LobbyGEStoincludetourisminthecurriculumofschools. Developtourismprogrammesontelevision;quizshowsonradio;etc. Setupschoolstourismwebsitewhereschoolchildrencanwriteabouttheir experiencesattouristattractions,andposttheirpictures. Organisefamiliarisationvisitfordomesticjournalists. Timeframe July2009June2010; June2011June2012 July2009June2010; June2011June2012 July2009Dec2009; July2010Dec2010; June2011June2012 July2009June2010; June2011June2012 July2009June2010; June2011June2012 July2009June2010 July2009Dec2009 May2010June2011; Aug2011Jun2012 July2009Apr2010; May2010June2011 July2009Dec2009; May2010June2011 Jan2010Mar2010 Jan2010Mar2010

July2009June2012

July2009Dec2009 July2009Sept2009 Sept2009Sept2009 Sept2009Oct2009 Oct2009Oct2009 Nov2009Jan2010 Dec2009Dec2009 Jan2010Jan2010 Feb2010Jun2012 July2009June2012 July2009June2012 July2009June2012 July2009Dec2009 July2009Dec2009; July2010Dec2010; July2011Nov2011

Organisefamiliarisationvisitforinternationaltraveljournalists. Appointcommitteetosourceforcommunicationsagenciestoundertakethe externalmarketingcommunicationsofGhanastourismproposition. Sourceandshortlistagencies. Brieftheagencies,andholdpitchingsessions. Appointandbrieftheselectedagency. Agencytodevelopmultimediaintegratedcommunicationsprogramme. InterimpresentationtoGTB/GHATOF. Givefinalapprovalofinternalcommunicationscampaign. Rolloutexternalcommunicationscampaign. Appointinternetmarketingconsultanttoadviseononlinestrategy. ReviewTouringghanawebsiteagainstsearchengineoptimisation benchmarks. ImplementonlinestrategyfortheGTB.Thiswillincludesearchengine optimisation;developmentandmaintenanceofdatabasesforemail marketing;blogging;websitemonitoring;developmentofrelevantlinks; websiteusability;websitetrackingandreporting;onlinecompetitor monitoringandreporting. Developmentoftourismcollaterals.Thisincludesvideos,photographsand highqualitybrochures(forgiveawaysanddownloads). GetinternationalsportspersonalitieslikeMichaelEssienandSulleyMuntari towearGhanabrandedtshirtsundertheirclubstrips. Setuprepresentativeofficesinmajorsourcecountries,asidentifiedinthe report. Setupinformationdesksatforeignmissions. OrganisetourofGhanatripsforinformationdeskrepresentativesatforeign missionsandrepresentativeoffices. DevelopCrisisManagementStrategy. July2010Nov2010 Feb2010Apr2010 Apr2010Apr2010 Apr2010May2010 May2010May2010 Jun2010Aug2010 July2010July2010 Aug2010Aug2010 Sept2010Jan2011; July2011Nov2011 July2009July2009 Aug2009Sep2009 Oct2009Jun2012

3.Ghananeedstobuildareputationasamustseetourist destinationinWestAfrica.

July2009Dec2009 July2009Dec2009 July2009June2009 July2009June2009 Aug2010Nov2010; Aug2011Nov2011 Sept2009Sept2009; Sept2010Sept2010; Sept2011Sept2011 July2009Sept2009 June2010June2010 Sept2009Sept2009; May2010May2010; Sept2010Sept2010; May2011May2011; Sept2011Sept2011; May2012May2012 July2009Jun2012 July2009Sept2009; July2010Sept2010; July2011Sept2011 Apr2010June2010; April2011June2011; April2012June2012 July2009Dec2009

4.Ghananeedstoimproveaccessibilitytothecountry.

Setupcommitteetoreviewtheonlineutilisationofthehospitalitysector, especiallyofhotelsandtouroperators. Ensurethathotelsandtouroperatorshavecorporatewebsites. Participateinkeyindustryfairsandexhibitions,e.g.ITBandWTM.

Lobbygovernmenttorevise/simplifyvisaregime,andupgradetourism infrastructure. Developanannualdirectoryofqualifiedandaccreditedoperatorsinthe industry. Visitmajortouroperatorsintargetedsourcecountries(notduring exhibitions). ExploreopportunitiestogetontoglobalonlineplatformssuchasPayPaland ixeo.com.

MonitoringandEvaluationMechanisms
For our goals and objectives to be realised, it is imperative that all initiatives are regularly monitored, to ensure that tasks or projects are being implemented in line with the marketingstrategy. The progress of this plan should be reviewed quarterly. The review committee must have highlevelrepresentationfromMOT,GTBandGHATOF. The Action Plan provides clear indications of the start and completion times for individual projectswithintheplan.Thiswillserveasausefulbenchmarkwhenevaluatingtheprogress ofallinitiativescontainedwithinthisStrategy. It is also worth reiterating that some elements within the Action Plan are not within the control of marketing, even though their effects and impacts on the tourism industry have beenclearlyestablished.

Glossary
Actionplan Diaspora Directmarketing Eclectic Guerrilla promotional methods Heritage Intentionsforaspecificactionthathelptoachieveaparticulargoal. Themovementofpeoplefromanynationorgroupawayfromtheir owncountry. Sellingbymeansofdirectcontactwiththeprospectivecustomer. Notfollowingonestyleorsetofideasbutchoosingfromorusinga widevariety. Unconventional,yetveryaggressivewaysofdistributingpromotional messagestothepublic.Emphasisisplacedontime,energyand imaginationratherthanalargemarketingbudget. Thehistory,traditionsandqualitiesthatacountryorsocietyhashad formanyyearsandthatareconsideredanimportantpartofits character. Availablepeopleorpersonnel,alongwiththeirskills,knowledgeand experience. Messageandrelatedmediausedtocommunicatewiththesectionof thepopulationthatmightbuyaparticularproductofservice. Theprocessofmanagingthevariousmeansthroughwhichmarketing messagesandrelatedmediaareusedtocommunicatewithamarket. Aprocessthatcanallowanentitytoconcentrateitslimitedresources onthegreatestopportunities,toincreasesalesandachievea sustainablecompetitiveadvantage. Atendencytoaparticularkindofbehaviour. Thebusinessofgivingthepublicinformationaboutaparticularentityin ordertocreateagoodimpression. Theactivitiesofpersonstravellingtoandstayinginplacesoutsidetheir usualenvironment,foraperiodofnotmorethanoneconsecutiveyear, forleisure,businessandotherpurposesnotrelatedtotheexerciseof anactivityremuneratedfromwithintheplacevisited. Apersontravellingtoandstayinginplacesoutsidehisorherusual environment,foraperiodofnotmorethanoneconsecutiveyear,for leisure,businessandotherpurposesnotrelatedtotheexerciseofan activityremuneratedfromwithintheplacevisited. Aplaceofinterestwheretouristsvisit,mainlyforitsinherentor exhibitedculturalvalue,historicalsignificance,naturalorbuiltbeauty, oramusementopportunities. Ageographicalareathatisdependenttoasignificantextentonincome generatedbytourism. Theactivitiesandexperiencesthatatouristparticipatesin. Theprocessofobtaininganofficialpermittoenteranothercountry.

Human resources Marketing communications Integrated channelstrategy Marketing strategy Propensity Publicrelations Tourism

Tourist

Tourist attraction Tourist destination Touristproduct Visaregime

TheNationalTourismMarketingStrategyforGhanaisadeliverableofthePublicPrivate PartnershipForuminTourism.Thisprojectwascompletedin2009,inassociationwiththe MinistryofTourism(MOT),theGhanaTouristBoard(GTB)andtheGhanaTourism Federation(GHATOF),withsupportfromtheJapanInternationalCooperationAgency(JICA) andSNVNetherlandsDevelopmentOrganisation. TheprojectconsultantwasPrincewillOsaroOmorogiuwa ofSimonPageBusinessSchool,Accra. Partners:

RepublicofGhana

MinistryofTourism