Tourism reforms could save Ghana GH¢4bn lost to foreign travel – GSS
The nation stands to retain a significant portion of the GHS4 billion spent by citizens on outbound tourism in 2023 if the right reforms and policy measures are implemented, the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) has said.
According to the 2023 Domestic and Outbound Tourism Survey Report, Ghanaians spent a total of GHS4.0 billion on outbound travel last year, comprising GHS59.8 million by same-day travellers and GH¢3.4 billion by overnight visitors.
The figures highlight the growing scale and cost of cross-border mobility and the increasing financial outflow from Ghana’s economy.
Government Statistician Dr Alhassan Iddrisu, who presented the report, explained that the survey serves as a baseline for Ghana’s first-ever Tourism Satellite Account (TSA), which aims to measure tourism’s real contribution to the national economy.
He noted that most outbound trips were self-arranged, reflecting limited use of local tour operators and low levels of formal sector participation in Ghana’s tourism value chain.
“Outbound same-day visitors mainly travelled for business and professional purposes, while overnight visitors travelled primarily to visit friends and relatives,” Dr Iddrisu said.
The data showed that business travel accounted for 34 per cent of same-day trips, followed by funeral-related travel (23 per cent), while visiting relatives dominated overnight trips with 40 per cent of total outbound movements.
Regional data indicated that the Ashanti Region recorded the highest number of same-day travellers, while Greater Accra accounted for the most overnight trips.
Most outbound journeys were to neighbouring West African countries, particularly Togo, which registered the highest on-trip expenditure among same-day travellers, reaching GHS12.8 million in the first quarter of 2023.
The report further revealed that self-managed trips accounted for nearly 90 per cent of total outbound tourism spending, a trend the GSS said underscores the need for policy reforms to retain more of this expenditure domestically.
The GSS therefore urged government to invest in transport and hospitality infrastructure, offer tax incentives to local tour operators, and encourage partnerships among private tour agencies, airlines and hotels to design outbound travel packages featuring Ghanaian products and services.
“If well harnessed, Ghana can retain a significant proportion of the four billion cedis currently leaving the economy through outbound tourism,” the statistician stressed, calling for deliberate reforms to strengthen local value retention and promote sustainable tourism.
The report also urged development partners and civil society organisations to support small tourism enterprises with funding, training and digital innovation, in line with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8.9, which promotes sustainable tourism, local culture and inclusive economic growth.
