Call Center
GTA Hosts Bozoma and Delegation From Endeavor Group
Saturday, March 7, 2020
The Ghana Tourism Authority received delegates from Endeavor, a leading company in Media and Entertainment, last week to facilitate discussions focused on business opportunities available within the Ghanaian entertainment industry.
The Chief Marketing Officer, Bozoma Saint John who led the delegation had previously worked on other projects during the Year of Return 2019.
“I felt the need to bring my company and its expertise to Ghana to understand the business opportunities especially within the media and entertainment space” Bozoma said this during an interaction with media about the purpose of her team’s meeting with local Creative industry stakeholders in Ghana.
She stated that the meeting was aligned partly with her personal desire to bridge the divide between Ghanaian local content producers and the global entertainment market saying, “It’s partly a personal pursuit given the work I have done on the Year of Return and now, Beyond the Return, but how do I turn this into a business opportunity for the artistes’ community that is here in Ghana,”
Bozoma added that Endeavor Group is interested in exploring the commercial viability of digitizing content and entertainment platform distribution using digital space over the more traditional methods especially used in the U.S and U.K.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Tourism Authority, Akwasi Agyeman pointed out that Beyond the Return campaign included in its objectives a greater call to action for investments and business opportunities within the country, thus the purpose of Endeavor executives tied in greatly with future aspirations for the Beyond the Return.
“We’ve started this time with the creative arts as the first point of call. We have Bozoma and the Endeavor Group in town and we felt this is the perfect opportunity to start that conversation around building some collaboration between them.”
The discussions included actors, music producers, film directors and producers, musicians, event organisers, among others and focused on areas such as merchandising, events, copyrights, production, literary works and others works within the media and entertainment landscape of Ghana.
Ghana’s creative arts “thriving”; “our kente now African identity symbol” – Akufo-Addo
President Nana Akufo-Addo has said Ghana’s creative arts industry is thriving.
Speaking at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium at the 63rd independence anniversary celebration in Kumasi, Ashanti Region on Friday, 6 March 2020, the President said: “The creative arts are thriving, and there are exciting things to interest a wide range of people”.
The fashion scene, he said, “is vibrant, and unearths new talent every day”.
“Take a look around this stadium today, and feast your eyes on the riot of colours and the wide variety of styles that our kente weavers can conjure.
“Every day, this ancient, royal, eye-catching, beautiful fabric is reinvented to win over new generations. The kente, of course, has crossed over our borders and is no longer exclusively Ghanaian, but the symbol of identity for peoples of African descent everywhere”, the President noted.
He observed that: “Our designers, tailors, and dressmakers keep Ghanaian-made clothes in the top range of attractive clothes”, adding: “Art galleries are alive with established and new painters and sculptors, and there are signs of their innovative works all around us”.
“We have always been known for musical talent, and this generation is keeping up the tradition”.
The President also urged Ghanaians to keep being Ghanaian in this election year.
“Fellow Ghanaians, there is renewed confidence in our foods and a strong belief in the things that define us as Ghanaians. We have always been known for arguments and debates, and, in an election year, it is predictable that the decibel level would go up. That is what we are currently experiencing, but, as the saying goes, even as the arguments get louder, we keep a keen lookout for each other’s eyes.
“There is an Akan proverb that says: ‘Omanni ko, y3ko a, y3keka nwi so; yenntutu ase?’. When we fight as members of a community or family, we bite off hair; we do not uproot it. In other words, in our gravest moments of fury, we strive to avoid bloodshed.
“The consensus is holding for all of us to work towards the prosperous, peaceful and happy Ghana we want. We all recognise that the responsibility we carry as the first sub-Saharan colonial country to gain independence is not simply to build a successful country. We owe it to the rest of the continent and the black race to demonstrate that, indeed, we can build and run a successful, prosperous and happy country. This is a task we do not shirk, and which all Ghanaians accept”, he said.
Source: Ghana Today online
2nd Annual Attorney General Alliance Africa Conference Held in Ghana
A Cocktail Reception at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra on Monday March 2, 2020 officially launched the 2nd Annual Attorney General Alliance Africa Conference. Dr. Ziblim Iddi Barri, The Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts & Culture, welcomed the group of U.S. Attorney Generals who travelled to Ghana for the conference by saying a few words. “It’s a privilege and an honour for us to host you,” he said. “I hope all of you who are here for the first time enjoy.” He took a moment to congratulate everyone for coming to Ghana and commended them for being elected to their positions.
Karl A. Racine, Attorney General of District of Columbia was given the floor to speak and he invited all his attorney general peers to join him and introduce themselves as well. Denise N. George, Attorney General U.S. Virgin Islands, Aaron Forde, Attorney General for Nevada, Keith Ellison, Attorney General for Minnesota, Letitia James, Attorney General for New York and Kwame Raoul, Attorney General for Illinois were all very excited to be in Accra for the conference.
Racine made everyone aware how important it is that this many African Americans were holding such positions in the U.S. “In 2014-2015, in the United States of America there was exactly one African American, black prosecutor, Attorney General in the United states,” he said. Kamala Harris, former Attorney General for California, was leaving her position when he was coming into his. He went on to say that now there has been an improvement as more African Americans are holding positions as Attorney Generals. “That doesn’t happen by accident,” he said, “…Each of these individuals fought really hard for the right to serve their jurisdictions.”
Karen White, Executive Director of the AGA, was excited to be there to network and work with Ghana towards coming up with solutions to some of the issues that the conference will address. The AGA Africa Conference is primarily focused on tackling transcontinental crime. Issues including human trafficking, counterfeit medicines, cybersecurity and money laundering crosses continents. These are important concerns they can all work together on battling.
Their commitment to working together for a positive outcome was felt and the event is certainly poised to deliver positive results. Information on the organisation can be found on their website on www.AGAafrica.org.
Written by Ivy Prosper
Ghana is ready to build bridges of cooperation – GTA assures AGA -Africa delegates
The CEO of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), Akwasi Agyeman joined six State Attorneys of the United States to assure them of his outfit’s cooperation in ensuring, among other things, safe, secure and responsible travel.
He was part of a panel discussion on “Beyond the Return” during the Attorney General Alliance (AGA – AFRICA) Conference currently ongoing at the Kempinski Gold Coast City Hotel.
Prior to the panel discussion, the CEO delivered a presentation on the “Beyond the Return” project which is geared towards sustaining the gains of the “Year of Return.”
He made mention of pillars of support for the project which include; Investments, Heritage Sites improvements, Branding Ghana, Birthright Journeys amongst others.
The six State Attorneys include; Letitia James, AG – New York, Karl Racine, AG – Washington, DC, Denise George, AG – Virgin Islands, Keith Ellison, AG – Minnesota, Aaron Ford, AG – Nevada, Kwame Raoul, AG – Illinois
The two days international conference organised by the Attorney General Alliance (AGA – Africa), a US – based organisation, is on the theme: “Tackling the reality of transnational crime in Africa – Cross border solutions and international cooperation”.
The Ghana Tourism Authority will on March 5th, sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the AGA to tackle issues of Responsible Tourism and jointly promote objectives of Beyond the Return.
GTA Partners Citi FM, CiTi Tv and AMA for Heritage Month
The Citi FM / Citi TV in collaboration with the Ghana Tourism Authority and the Accra Metropolitan Assembly has launched the 2020 Heritage month at the Accra Metropolitan Assembly Conference Room, near the Octagon on Wednesday 26th February 2020.
The heritage caravan festival is set to broaden ties with our culture and our country Ghana as a whole. The caravan commences from 1st March to 7th March, where (12) twelve out of (16) sixteen Regions of Ghana would be toured on road works, sound and sites and experience the Region and what they have to offer.
In his welcome statement, Mr. Samuel Attah Mensah, CEO of Citi FM/ Citi TV he emphasized on the need for Ghanaians to hold on to their heritage in order not to loose it. The month of March was chosen to recognize our rich Ghanaian cultural heritage. He called on other media to champion this course. Mr. Atta Mensah outlined the programme of activities for the heritage month as follows: 12thto 14thMarch – Heritage Art festival and Back to your village food bazaar at the fore court of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly, Accra Music Expo and MOGO at the Accra International Conference Centre on 21st March, 2020.
Mr. Mohammed Adjei Sowah, the Accra Mayor stated that as part of the initiative with GTA and Citi TV / FM their aim to make Accra beautiful through Arts. He further expressed his appreciation to GTA and Citi TV /FM for being partners and expressed the hope that the heritage month will channel our culture together with arts, paintings, music among other things.
Mr. Akwasi Agyeman the CEO of Ghana Tourism Authority stressed on the see GHANA, eat GHANA, wear GHANA and feel GHANA marketing campaign which was launched by the Ghana Tourism Authority in June 2017. This campaign offer us the opportunity to know more about Ghana and its unique attractions, food, fabrics and music as a whole. Mr. Akwasi Agyeman reiterated that the National Commission on Culture is also working in close collaboration with the Authority on the wear Ghana month which adds up to the heritage month and other activities lined up.
Ghana Barbados Deepen Collaboration
As part of the year of return initiative in Ghana 2019, which was intended by the government to encourage African-Americans from the diaspora to come to Africa to settle and invest in the continent, it is no doubt that Ghana is a country of good reputation in terms of human relations and investment, where a lot of countries like China, Nigeria, Barbados, and the likes wants to do business with.
The Minister of Creative Economy, Culture and Sports, Mr. John A King, MP and some delegates from Barbados paid a courtesy call to the Ghana Tourism Authority recently to discuss the co-operation between Ghana and Barbados in creative arts and the film industry.
Barbados is an Eastern Caribbean Island and an independent British Commonwealth nation which is said to be the Caribbean’s leading tourism island in the region.
The Minister of Creative Economy, Culture and Sports Mr. John A King MP, was joined by his colleague Minister of Tourism and International Transport, Hon. Kerrie Symonds, MP and the rest of the delegation, where they were hosted with a cocktail at the Osu Christianborg Castle. At the treat, they presented an appeal to the creative and arts industry to collaborate with actors and actresses, and other wood carving industry in order to collaborate, train and invest together.
The movie ‘JOSEPH’ which was shot in two Caribbean countries, Jamaica and Barbados, as well as Ghana, generated the interest of having a connection with the country and collaborating with not only the film industry but the creative arts industry as a whole. The Minister also talked about the opportunities one will gain from uniting the various cultures and ideologies of the two countries as well as partnering in businesses with them for the benefit of the next generation.
He cited their country as the first among the Caribbeans to waive the visa requirements for Ghana, as part of boosting bilateral relations.
2020 Paragliding Festival Launched – Novel Activities Promised For 13th Edition
The Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) has launched this year’s Paragliding Festival at Mpraeso-Kwahu in the Eastern Region. The annual Paragliding Festival dubbed, “Fun and Fly” comes on around the Easter period and this year it is from April 10 -13.
Registration: Click Here
The 2020 edition will be the 13th since its inception in 2005. At the launch at the Mpraeso Chief’s Palace today, Deputy CEO in Charge of Operations at the Ghana Tourism Authority, Ekow Sampson said this year will feature novel additions which promise to spice up the Festival.
“This year’s paragliding will have side attractions like health and fitness walk, spin and win and a tour by the Kwahu Tourism Initiative to the attraction sites in Kwahu. The Paragliding event is an aviation sport which can be enjoyed by all groups of people, that’s the youth and adults,” he said.
Sampson later in an interaction with the media added that as part of the crystal jubilee celebration of the event, “we want to have a special activity to climax the 15 years anniversary of the Paragliding Festival. We also have a developed site which we also want to inaugurate; Abetifi Stone Age Park which is a cave which has been there for about 15,000 years and shows where the first people who came to Kwahu lived.”
A sub-Chief of the Mpraeso Traditional Council, Nana Anum, who spoke of the Chief of Mpraeso, Nana Ampadu Dadwiam II, Mpraesohene, said they were grateful for the continued support they enjoy each year during the Festival from the GTA and their partners. He urged them to ensure the safety and security of all those who will be participating in the festivities.
GTA Officials and the Media after the launch went to the take-off site to inspect ongoing works commissioned to put the place in shape in readiness for the Festival.
Paragliding Festival 2020 is under the theme “Soaring Beyond the Return.”
Registration is currently ongoing at visitghana.com
By: Samuel Obeng Appah
Source: Voyages Afriq
Jake Obetsebi Lamptey Honoured At National Chocolate Day Celebration
The Ghana Tourism Authority has honoured the late Jake Okanta Obetsebi Lamptey during the climax durbar to mark the celebrations of the 2020 National Chocolate Day at the Alisa Hotel on 14th February. He was honoured for his immense contribution in spearheading the institution of the National Chocolate Day in 2005 when he was the Minister of Tourism.
A citation and chocolate hamper was presented to the wife, Mrs. Esther Obetsebi Lamptey by the Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Hon. Barbara Oteng Gyasi, who was supported by the Paramount Chief of the Osu Traditional Area, Nii Okwei Kinka Dowuona VI. Other dignitaries who graced the occasion were the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Hon. Dr. Ziblim Iddi Barri, the Chief Director of the Ministry of Tourism, Alhaji Abdulai Yakubu, the Board Chair of GTA, Madam Adelaide Ahwireng, Board Member of COCOBOD, Nana Ama Dokuah, the CEO of the Ghana Tourism Authority, Mr. Akwasi Agyeman, CEO of CPC, Nana Agyenim Boateng, President of GHATOF, Madam Bella Ahu, representatives from the public and private sector.
According to the citation, the Late Obetsebi Lamptey’s initiative has played an essential role in boosting the local consumption of chocolate and other cocoa-based products, as well as domestic tourism. In addition, it has created awareness of the health benefits of chocolate.
The Management of CPC pledged their support to supply the Late Hon. Jake’ family with chocolate and cocoa based products every month.
“Future Scholars” Deepen Ties With Ghana
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Tourism Authority, Mr. Akwasi Agyeman has hosted some members of the diaspora who came from the USA on February 17, 2020. The diasporans known as the “Future Scholars” paid a courtesy call to the Ghana Tourism Authority on 17thFebruary 2020. The call was to inform of the Authority about their longstanding initiative of a school building project in Oshiyee at Kokrobite which was inspired by the need to contribute to the education sector in Ghana. The “Future Scholars” have been visiting Ghana for the past 25years.
Speaking for the group, the leader said “As retired educators who have frequently visited the country, we see the need to contribute by building a school to provide basic education in the community.” They also lauded the Government for their ‘Free Education’ policy and noted that it tied greatly with their project for accessible education.
Mr. Akwasi Agyeman welcomed them and was quite excited about the initiative saying that, “Thank you for being regular visitors to Ghana and building a school to provide for the community.”
During the visit, CEO of GTA mentioned the significance of the Year of Return and noted how their project tied in with the ‘Beyond the Return’ and its pillars, which he said would be officially launched a few weeks to come. He also pointed out other developmental projects undertaken by other committed individuals and groups who visited Ghana during the Year of Return.
The GTA will take a key interest in this project by Future Scholars.
Chocolate Day 2020: Ghana Tourism Authority Surprises Media With Cakes & Hampers
It was the true ‘Chocolate Experience as the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), as part of the National Chocolate Day celebration last Friday, presented Made- In-Ghana Cocoa-based goodies to some media houses in Accra to mark the day.
The surprise gifts, which were presented to TV and Radio Stations during Friday’s Morning Shows, included a chocolate cake and a hamper filled with Ghana’s quality Golden Tree products such as chocolate bars, chocolate spread, chocolate drink and many other local cocoa-based products. The Print media was also not left out as Daily Graphic, Times and Daily Guide were also part of the surprise visits.
Led by the Minister of Tourism; Hon. Barbara Oteng Gyasi, the visit to the media houses and corporate bodies is part of measures to promote Ghana chocolate and Made in Ghana cocoa products. Some of the media houses visited include GTV, TV3, GH ONE, ATINKA TV, CITI TV, ADOM TV, 3FM, JOY FM, Y FM and HAPPY FM.
February 14 is celebrated globally as Valentine’s Day. In Ghana, it is observed as the National Chocolate Day. The theme for this year’s celebration was “My Chocolate Experience: My Holistic Well-being“. The activities for this year’s celebration included a health screening exercise at Anum Apapamu, a cocoa farming community near Suhum, visits to Children’s wards in hospitals across the country as well as a Photo and Art Competition. These events were climaxed with a Chocolate Experience Exhibition at Alisa Hotel.
The National Chocolate Day was introduced in 2005 by a then Minister of Tourism, the late Jake Otanka Obetsebi-Lamptey as a way of boosting the domestic consumption of Made-in-Ghana chocolate and other cocoa-based products, promote domestic tourism as and enhance companies in Ghana’s cocoa industry such as the Cocoa Processing Company, Ghana Cocoa Board and others.
By: Collins Ackwerh / Digital Marketing