the Ghana Tourism Authority was established as the main implemeting body of the Ministry of Tourism, replacing the Ghana Tourist Board. GTA’s mission is to ensure sustainable tourism development through the creation of an enabling environment for the provision of quality tourism facilities and services for the traveling public with a well-qualified, highly-motivated, and dedicated work force, thereby promoting tourism to become the leading sector of the economy.

Professor Geoffrey Lipman, President of ICTP, said: “The involvement of the Ghana Tourism Authority confirms the growing strength of the African membership of ICTP and the clear commitment emerging across the continent for the green growth and quality priorities we represent. Ghana is also a rapidly-growing aviation hub, which is vital to Africa's connectivity progress and its totally interrelated development agenda.”

The Ghana Tourism Authority envisions Ghana becoming the tourism capital of West Africa, especially in culture, heritage, ecotourism, as well as conference tourism in a quality non-mass manner.

Nature is important to Ghana and a conservation program strives to protect this heritage, to enable visitors to enjoy it and to enable Ghanaians to pass it on to future generations. Ghana has a rich natural treasure made up of 16 national parks, resource reserves, and wildlife sanctuaries, which are open throughout the year. From the savannah of the coastal plains, the dense tropical forest, and the grassland of the north, to the life-giving water bodies, which crisscross the country, distinct wildlife abounds in Ghana.

ICTP Chairman Juergen T. Steinmetz said: “Ghana pulsates with life. From the bustle of downtown Accra to the adobe villages of the north, and the ancient Kingdom of Asante, it is a country whose immense cultural diversity both thrills and fascinates visitors, drawing them into a daily rhythm that is uniquely and unmistakenly African. We are sure the energy of Ghana will permeate our membership, and ICTP in turn will be able to bring Ghana’s tourism opportunities to a wider audience.”

For more information, go to www.ghana.travel .

ABOUT ICTP

The International Council of Tourism Partners (ICTP) is a grassroots travel and tourism coalition of global destinations committed to quality service and green growth. The ICTP logo represents the strength in collaboration (the block) of many small communities (the lines) committed to sustainable oceans (blue) and land (green). ICTP engages communities and their stakeholders to share quality and green opportunities including tools and resources, access to funding, education, and marketing support. ICTP advocates sustainable aviation growth, streamlined travel formalities, and fair coherent taxation. ICTP supports the UN Millennium Development Goals, the UN World Tourism Organization's Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, and a range of programs that underpin them. The ICTP alliance is represented in Haleiwa, Hawaii, USA; Brussels, Belgium; Bali, Indonesia; and Victoria, Seychelles.

ICTP has members in Anguilla; Aruba; Bangladesh; Belgium, Belize; Brazil; Canada; Caribbean; China; Croatia; The Gambia; Germany; Ghana; Greece; Grenada; India; Indonesia; Iran; Korea (South); La Reunion (French Indian Ocean); Malaysia; Malawi; Mauritius; Mexico; Morocco; Nicaragua; Nigeria; Northern Mariana Islands (USA Pacific Island Territory); Sultanate of Oman; Pakistan; Palestine; Philippines; Rwanda; Seychelles; Sierra Leone; South Africa; Sri Lanka; Sudan; Tajikistan; Tanzania; Trinidad & Tobago; Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe; and from the US: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maine, Missouri, Utah, Virginia, and Washington.

Partner associations include: African Bureau of Conventions; African Chamber of Commerce Dallas/Fort Worth; Africa Travel Association; Boutique & Lifestyle Lodging Association; Caribbean Tourism Organization; Countrystyle Community Tourism Network/Villages as Businesses; Cultural and Environment Conservation Society; DC-Cam (Cambodia); Euro Congres; Hawaii Tourism Association; International Delphic Council (IDC); International Foundation for Aviation and Development, Montreal, Canada; International Institute for Peace Through Tourism (IIPT); International Organization of Electronic Tourism Industry (IOETI), Italy; Positive Impact Events, Manchester, UK; RETOSA: Angola - Botswana - DR Congo - Lesotho - Madagascar - Malawi - Mauritius - Mozambique - Namibia - South Africa - Swaziland - Tanzania - Zambia- Zimbabwe; Routes, SKAL International; Society for Accessible Travel & Hospitality (SATH); Sustainable Travel International (STI); The Region Initiative, Pakistan; The Travel Partnership Corporation; vzw Reis-en Opleidingscentrum, Gent, Belgium; WATA World Association of Travel Agencies, Switzerland; as well as university and educational institute partners.

For more information, go to: www.tourismpartners.org .

The meeting touched base on various issues, and each delegation recapped their own observations and experience of their country’s tourism, so that others could benefit from it.

Some of the topics covered were the development of economic opportunities, best practices for sustainable tourism development, tourism policy, and the need to prioritize the sector within the national framework of economic activity.

Also discussed was the relaxation of visa requirements, which will ensure that each country’s immigration authorities develop an appropriate framework to facilitate the adoption of a single tourist visa for the COMESA region.

Developing the sustainable tourism strategy was also featured and encouraged, while issues such as the conservation of biodiversity also featured high on the agenda. How to adopt a sustainable tourism development policy and strategy by the end 2013 was investigated, as all delegates were aware that only an intact environment could sustainably support wildlife and nature-based tourism.

Looking back, Mr. César noted that the forum was very informative, and countries taking part in the forum are more aware of the great potential that a stable tourism industry can have on one’s country’s economy, “As of today, COMESA members need to take a common and regional approach towards a sustainable tourism development and engage in implementing a plan of action, which has been brought forward in the forum.

“For his part, Walter Talma, COMESA/USAID Program Coordinator, who was supporting the Seychelles delegation at the forum, said, “Regional integration in this sector must be part of our intense involvement to create more wealth and economic growth of our member states, noting that tourism is until now still our bread and butter.”