Tourism: Building on Natural Gifts and Cultural Legacy

Ghana’s recreation and tourism sector is founded on its rich cultural and diverse heritage, embodied in its forts and castles, vibrant festivals, and intricate arts and crafts. The country boasts an array of natural attractions, including evergreen forests, majestic mountains, serene lakes, and captivating waterfalls. The sector remains highly labour-intensive, offering numerous small-scale employment opportunities in areas such as travel and tours, handicrafts, music and dance, and authentic Ghanaian cuisine, making it an increasingly attractive prospect for investors.

The single most consequential development for the sector is the removal of a barrier rather than the building of one. From 25 May 2026, Ghana grants visa-free entry to all African passport holders, alongside a national e-visa portal and electronic travel authorisation for other travellers. Ghana is now among a small group of African countries offering open access across the continent, and the policy directly supports the intra-African travel that the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was designed to generate.

Key components of the sector include accommodation (hotels, guest houses, lodges, hostels, and apartment complexes), food and beverages (restaurants, bars, nightclubs, and food vendors), attractions (nature resorts, heritage sites, safaris, beach resorts, nature and adventure parks), and creative arts (cultural events, meetings, incentives, conferences, exhibits, movie houses, arts and crafts, stage performance programmes, awards, and celebration programmes). The beverage industry has seen increasing competition in recent years with numerous small producers entering the market, and food spending is projected to keep growing on positively trending demographics.

FROM 25 MAY 2026, GHANA GRANTS VISA-FREE ENTRY TO ALL AFRICAN PASSPORT HOLDERS, ALONGSIDE A NATIONAL E-VISA PORTAL – PLACING GHANA AMONG THE MOST OPEN DESTINATIONS ON THE CONTINENT.

International arrivals reached 1,306,962 in 2025, up from 1,288,804 the previous year, and the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, and Creative Arts reported receipts of US$4.34 billion from those arrivals. December remains the sector’s strongest month, with arrivals in December 2025 more than 11 per cent above the same month a year earlier, a direct return on sustained diaspora-focused campaigning. Cruise traffic is emerging as a secondary channel, with 18 cruise calls and over 5,400 passengers through the ports of Tema and Takoradi.

The supply side is expanding faster than arrivals. The number of licensed tourism enterprises rose to 7,109 in 2025 from 6,702 the previous year, indicating robust growth in the hospitality sector and continuing a trend from 5,786 the year before that. Licensing itself is being modernised through a new digital tourism management platform intended to streamline registration and compliance, a meaningful reduction in friction for operators entering the market.

Ghana has numerous ecotourism sites spread across its regions. Notable and highly visited sites include Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park, Kakum National Park, Bunso Arboretum, Mole National Park, Paga Slave Camp and Sacred Crocodile Pool, Nzulezu Village, and sea turtle conservation areas in the Central, Northern, and Western regions. The export of industrial art and crafts has experienced significant growth, a trend expected to continue given the sector’s vibrancy.

Ghana’s population size and growth significantly support the expansion of the tourism and recreation sector. With a population of over 34 million growing at an intercensal growth rate of 2.1 per cent, and an urbanisation rate now around 57 per cent, there is rising demand for recreational and tourism activities. This demographic trend creates a robust market for the tourism industry, fostering its growth and development. Ghana’s rapidly expanding telecommunications sector is another crucial factor: growth in communication and information technology enhances awareness of Ghana’s culture and branding, ultimately promoting tourist sites and recreational facilities across the nation.

THE NUMBER OF LICENSED TOURISM ENTERPRISES ROSE TO 7,109 IN 2025, FROM 6,702 THE PREVIOUS YEAR, AND 5,786 THE YEAR BEFORE THAT.

The government’s commitment to developing tourism infrastructure is evident through significant investments and initiatives. Supported by World Bank funding of US$50 million, the government has prioritised upgrading road networks throughout the country. These improvements are crucial for enhancing access to tourist destinations and supporting the overall growth of the sector. The ‘Year of Return, Ghana 2019’ was a landmark marketing campaign targeting the African-American and diaspora markets, commemorating 400 years since the first enslaved African arrived in Jamestown, Virginia. The campaign generated US$1.9 billion through tourism and travel in 2019, showcasing Ghana as a prime destination for the African diaspora.

Building on these successes, the government continues to support the creative arts. Following a US$25 million investment programme launched in 2021 to boost local film and movie production, efforts are ongoing to enhance the film ecosystem. The domestic and regional campaign branded ‘#ExperienceGhana, #ShareGhana’ continues to boost local and regional tourism, and March of every year is designated Ghana Month, featuring activities such as ‘See Ghana, Eat Ghana, Wear Ghana, and Feel Ghana’ to promote national pride and cultural engagement.

The ‘Black Star Experience’, launched in 2025, provides the framework for positioning Ghana as Africa’s leading destination for the global diaspora, organised around seven pillars, cinema, music, cuisine, aesthetics, fashion, literature and heritage, with early activity through the Creative Connect Afrika and Taste the Culture programmes. The Marine Drive project, a 241-acre waterfront redevelopment transforming the stretch from Osu Christiansborg Castle to the Arts Centre into a business and commercial hub, was placed under a new board and steering committee in August 2026. Government is now actively pursuing public–private partnerships and co-financing for the scheme, which will be delivered in phases beginning with public promenades, cultural spaces, and mixed-use precincts. For investors, this is one of the few opportunities of its scale on the West African coast currently open to partnership.

SECTOR OPPORTUNITIES

• Development of sports infrastructure.
• Development and funding of tourism projects with the support of donor funding and technical assistance.
• Partnership and co-financing opportunities in the Marine Drive waterfront redevelopment, for which government is actively seeking private investors.
• Opportunity to develop intermodal transportation systems, including light rail systems and extensive road networks, that allow tourists to travel easily to their destinations.
• There are opportunities to set up companies in travel and tours, handicrafts, music and dance, and other ancillary services to support the industry.
• Opportunities to set up world-class training institutes to provide the human capital development necessary for the seamless operation of tourist sites and recreational facilities, as well as boosting the tourist experience.
• Accommodation and hospitality capacity aimed at the intra-African travel market opened up by visa-free entry for African passport holders.

INVESTMENT INCENTIVES

• Ghana guarantees investments against expropriation and offers free transferability of profits and dividends for foreign investors.
• Companies in the tourism sector enjoy a corporate tax rate of 22 per cent against the general rate of 25 per cent; a 10 per cent concessionary rate on imported goods for tourist establishments, and import duty exemptions for plant and machinery.
• Ghana has a stable political environment, coupled with a flourishing business environment partly attributed to an excellent labour force.
• Visa-free entry for all African passport holders and a national e-visa portal materially widen the addressable market for any tourism asset in Ghana.
• Investing in Ghana provides access to the African market through AfCFTA, which is headquartered in Accra.

DOMESTIC TOURISM
Ghana continues to solidify its position as a vibrant domestic tourism destination, with approximately 1.79 million visits recorded across 55 tracked tourist sites in 2025. Domestic tourism fuels local economies, revives cultural heritage, and strengthens the threads of unity in the national fabric. This renaissance has been propelled by bold government initiatives revitalising sites, expanding access, and reimagining tourism not as a luxury, but as a right and a responsibility. Residents continue to constitute the large majority of visits with around 84 per cent of arrivals at tracked heritage sites demonstrating a consistent pattern of domestic dominance. The Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park maintains its status as the most visited attraction in the country. ■TG