Today, it’s two ‘Links I Like’ I’d like to comment on. They concern new visa travel regulations that affect children travelling to and from South Africa. They were drafted to protect children and were to come into effect on October 1, 2014. Here’s the first link entitled Holy Moly, South Africa’s New Entry Rules for Families are Beyond Strict. Well, the revised visa requirements caused a lot of controversy in the tourism community thinking they would negatively affect international arrivals.
The uproar worked and government retreated temporarily. Here’s the second link I liked dated September 16 New regulations for travelling children postponed to 2015
Wow, the South African private sector must have really raised the proverbial roof for the South African government to bend. Could you see this happening in Ghana, first the industry’s protest, second the government’s accommodation?
This is what a private public partnership is all about….engagement and involvement…but first the industry must be valued and celebrated as an economic contributor.
Now, if you have been following this blog or one of the 467 members of the SCRAP SHORT TERM TOURIST VISAS TO GHANA Facebook group, you probably know that there has been neither engagement nor involvement by the private sector nor by the public service. Where are the travel and tourism associations? The largest and most powerful of associations, THE GHANA HOTELS ASSOCIATION, initially pledged support but has remained silent. Where is GHATOF, the Federation of Ghana Tourism Operators, the umbrella organization for all 21 tourism sector associations. Nothing!
Here, I would like to share the most recent contributions on the Facebook group page :
Nii Tackie Ankrah
Yesterday at 2:37pm
Tourism is the panacea to our ecomonic woes! Our leaders should stop paying lip service to Tourism Development in Ghana.and just today Nii Tackie Ankrah
1 hr
We should see #Tourism as a business and not just funfair and sight-seeing
and here are my responses: to the first: Christopher Scott: YES, Nii Tackie Ankrah…but it will be a long hard grind getting government and the private sector on board…
and to the second: Christopher Scott: YES, tourism is people’s livelihoods-owners, workers and all in the value chain. And it needs incentives, now more than at any time in the short history of the industry. Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Ghana
This is all a start…a year and four months in…
MADinGhana's Blog 
Posted on September 20, 2014
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