Ofori-Atta wants Ghana to 'wow tourists like King Solomon did to Queen Sheba'

Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta has likened his dream for Ghana’s tourist sector to the instance where Queen Sheba was astonished by King Solomon’s country when she visited him in Bible days.

The minister in his address during the launch of the redeveloped and refurbished Kwame Nkrumah Park said the government is doing all it takes to make Ghana a preferred tourist destination,

He noted that Jamaica’s tourism sector contributes about 35% to its Gross Domestic Product whereas Ghana’s contributes only 5%.

Ofori-Atta said, “That is where we want to go.”

Speaking at the reopening of the refurbished Nkrumah Memorial Park on Tuesday, July 4, 2023, he said: “Let us strive to make Ghana an excellent destination for tourism where all people across the nations of the world would like to visit. And let it be said about Ghana as proclaimed by the Queen of Sheba concerning Solomon’s kingdom.

"Let me quote: 'The report I heard in my own country about your achievements is true but I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes, indeed not even half was told me, in wisdom and in wealth you have far exceeded what I heard', 1Kings 10:16.

“This is the dream of our President Nana Akufo-Addo for Ghana,” he added.

The Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park which was closed down about a year and a few months ago for renovation has been completed and launched on July 4, 2023.

The project which was a partnership between the government and other development partners sought to give a facelift to the monumental ground that housed the remains of Ghana’s first president and his wife among other things.

The World Bank noted that it is pleased with the outcome of the facility whiles adding that it is open to more partnerships in the country’s sector.

SSD/FNOQ

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