The Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture has organized a training programme for some drivers in Kumasi to equip them with skills needed to improve the tourism sector.
The programme was executed by the Ghana Tourism Development Company (GTDC), an agency under the wings of the ministry tasked to, among others, oversee the development of tourism in the country.
“President Akufo-Addo is enthused about tourism because of the value it possesses. Consequently, he is poised to see the sector progress and these are some of the measures for a smooth execution,” said Mark Okraku-Mantey, Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture during a brief speech.
Lauretta Kuadey, GTDC Projects Manager reiterated to the media after the first phase of the programme that it was imperative drivers were trained on how to interact with tourists considering that visitors engage their services to their respective destinations, stressing that drivers are ambassadors of tourism.
“We decided to train drivers within the tourism sector as we have identified their role in promoting tourism,” she said. “They are the front liners who meet tourists when they arrive in the country and so this programme will help propagate the good news of the tourism sector, prospects and everything. If tourists arrive, they can tell them potential places to visit.”
Ms. Kuadey disclosed that a total of three thousand (3000) drivers have been trained for the first phase and “we hope to make it bigger in the future”.
Aside from the training the drivers received, they were given “certificates for participation, bumper stickers and some t-shirts” as a reward for making themselves available for the exercise.
