By Stephen Asante/Hafsa Obeng
Accra, July 04, GNA – President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has inaugurated the renovated Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park, in Accra, to honour, promote and preserve the legacy of one of the greatest Pan-Africanists of all time.
The Park, occupying an area of 5.4 acres, has a personal museum on Dr. Nkrumah, a 10.8 feet bronze statue, and an imposing mausoleum where his mortal remains and that of his wife, Fathia, are interred.
Other facilities include statues of horn blowers with a fountain surrounded by trees planted by some distinguished personalities, a library, conference and reception centres, an infirmary and a gift shop.
New introductions to the Park include an audio-visually synchronised fountain, mini-amphitheatre, as well as picnic area for the youth and visitors.
President Nana Akufo-Addo described the project as monumental– a project expected to boost Ghana’s international tourist arrivals significantly.
“We have a unique opportunity to transform our tourism sector,” he noted, stressing that the country was endowed with many heritage sites which could be developed and upgraded for revenue generation.
The Park, until its renovation, attracted some 90, 000 visitors annually, making it one of the top ten most visited tourist attraction sites in the country and West African sub-Region in general.
Ghana has made a projection of 1.2 million tourist arrivals by the end of 2023, and the Park is expected to add up significantly to achieving this target.
President Nana Akufo-Addo hinted that his Administration’s agenda was to make the country the hub of heritage tourism in the sub-Region.
Consequently, the existing forts and castles, as well as other monumental tourist attraction sites are being rehabilitated.
The Government has stepped up efforts to build new roads, renovate dilapidated ones, and construct airports to open up the country – making tourist attraction sites more accessible to visitors, the President noted.
On domestic tourism, he stressed the need for the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture to work with the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies to encourage the citizenry to visit the country’s iconic tourist attraction sites.
The President lauded the World Bank for its assistance in renovating the Park and continued support to develop Ghana’s tourism sector.
The Government, he said, was committed to injecting the requisite resources to build the capacity of stakeholders in the tourism industry for effective service delivery.
Mr Pierre La Porte, the World Bank Country Director, paid a glowing tribute to the late Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first President and Pan-Africanist extraordinaire, for his visionary leadership.
“This is a day that all Africans should be proud of,” he stated.
Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta, Minister of Finance, said the Government’s investment in the tourism industry aimed at creating jobs and wealth for the sustainable growth of the economy.
Dr. Ibrahim Mohammed Awal, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, pointed out that with the repositioning and enhancements of the tourism, arts and cultural infrastructure, it was expected that the sector would become the number one contributor to Ghana’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2025.
GNA