Use festival to promote tourism - Osei-Assibey

Kyempo-Ashanti, April 15, GNA - Mr Osei-Assibey Antwi, Deputy Ashanti Regional Minister, has urged traditional rulers to use their various festivals to promote and showcase tourist attraction sites in their localities. He said the promotion of tourist sites could serve as source of employment for the youth and generate revenue for communities therefore chiefs should exploit them to their advantage.

Mr Osei-Assibey made the call during the celebration of 'Kwadutwum' festival by the chiefs and people of Kyempo near Obogu in the Asante-Akim South District at the weekend.

"Our chiefs and elders should use festivals as medium of change to market the district and promote tourist attractions that abound in their communities," he added.

Mr Osei-Assibey, who is also the Acting District Chief Executive for Asante-Akim South, assured the people that the assembly would collaborate with the Ministry of Tourism and Diaspora Relations to develop tourist sites in the district. He appealed to investors and entrepreneurs to collaborate with the chiefs and assembly to invest in the tourist sites.

Nana Asirifi Amaning II, Chief of Kyempo, said the festival was to celebrate the achievement of their great heroes and heroines in the past and showcase the embodiment of the rich cultural values, traditions and customs of the people of Kyempo. He noted that relegation of traditional and cultural values to the background had led to the increase in social vices and moral decadence making indiscipline endemic in the society.

"Non-performance of puberty rites had resulted in rampant teenage pregnancies and traditional authorities should re-introduce it," he added. Nana Amaning disclosed that about eight girls who sat for last year's Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in the community were pregnant at the time of writing the examination.

He urged chiefs to preserve the rich cultural values bequeathed to them by their ancestors to help fight the increasing immorality in society.