Ghana seeks to deepen private sector participation in the development of ecotourism potentials around the country, an official has disclosed.
Nyadia Sulemana Nelson, Deputy Chief Executive of the Forestry Commission, said this during the annual media briefing and stock-taking of the commission’s activities on Friday.
He said the country would soon introduce a new wildlife law to revise and consolidate all laws relating to wildlife and protected areas to conform with existing policies and emerging trends in the natural resources sector and ensure the effective implementation of international conventions on wildlife.
He said the proposed Wildlife Resources Management Act which is awaiting presidential assent, would actualise vision to attract private investments into the establishment and management of zoos and private wildlife sanctuaries and empowering local communities to participate in wildlife management.
“Some private sector players are already working with us in the development of the sector, and since the government cannot do it alone, we need to create the enabling environment to attract the necessary private investments into the sector, with a strong regulatory framework,” Nelson stated.
The deputy chief executive said Ghana had great potential in ecotourism, with abundant resources that it could harness to become one of the major ecotourism destinations in the world.
Richard Gyimah, Director for Stakeholders, Ecotourism, and Wildlife at the commission, explained that private participation would be in partnership with the government institution to set up zoos and wildlife parks in the country.
“We always say the private sector is the engine of growth, so this is another area we have identified that the private sector can partner with the government to induce growth in the country. Already, we have been partnering with some private operators, but the law provides the legal backing to deepen that,” Gyimah stated.
Gyimah private participation would expand the subsector and create more jobs for tour guides, zookeepers, rangers, and the entire hospitality industry, adding that private participation would also provide access to more wildlife species for researchers and academic institutions and boost ecotourism in Ghana.
He said private sector participation would also help bring ecotourism in Ghana to international standards and generate more tourism revenue and foreign exchange.
“With Private sector participation, we believe these revenue numbers will increase, and we will increase the revenue accruing to the state,” added the official.
Already, the official said the sector had been witnessing some increasing activity, especially after the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He revealed that from 300,000 visitors to ecotourism sites in 2022, the number has increased to nearly 400,000 in 2023, and the commission aims to attract at least 500,000 visitors in 2024. Also, he said the visits generated 4.5 million Ghana cedis (374,000 U.S. dollars) in 2022 and 6.0 million cedis (499,000 dollars) for the commission this year.
Ghana’s two state-run zoos are located in Kumasi and Accra. There are also private facilities and parks at Aqua-Safari Resort in Ada, east of the capital, Safari Valley Resort in Adukrom in the Eastern Region, and Royal Cosy Hills Resort in Jirapa, in the Upper West Region.