The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), Mr Akwasi Agyeman, has bemoaned the huge impact of the coronavirus disease on the sector.

According the CEO, the industry stands to lose more than GH¢400 million in expected revenue due to the virus outbreak in Ghana.

Following the President’s temporary ban on public gatherings in the wake of the covid-19 outbreak, the Kwahu Traditional Council last Monday announced the cancellation of the Easter celebration.

Mr Agyeman projects that the cancellation of the Kwahu Easter activities would result in about GH¢21million revenue loss.

In an interview with the Daily Graphic, Mr Agyeman said many service providers in the hospitality industry would be badly affected by the cancellation.

“Car rental companies, hotels, food vendors and many other businesses have been affected hugely due to the calling off of Kwahu Easter. Last year alone, we had 250 people flying in for paragliding and each person spent close to GH¢2,000.

“We have engaged tour operators, hotels, car rental companies and all those who matter when it comes to Kwahu Easter celebration.

“Revenue lost will be more than GH¢21million, which is a big loss, but all the same we are planning another event known as Kwahu Homecoming, which also has a lot of activities, including paragliding,” he said.

Mr Agyeman however explained that, although the revenue loss was huge, it could not be compared to the cost the country would incur had the Kwahu Easter gone ahead and people had contracted the virus.

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“There will be a total shut down and our health infrastructure may not be able to support it. It was a good decision by the President to ban all public events for the good of Ghanaians,” he said.

The Chief of Abetifi, Nana Asiedu Agyeman III, also shared similar sentiments in an interview with the Daily Graphic, saying saving lives was more important than the celebration.

“I have been a chief for the past 28 years and this is the first time such a huge event has been cancelled. But the cancellation is in the best interest of the citizens of Ghana because the Kwahu Easter celebration brings together about three million people,” he said.

“Can you imagine what would happen had it been held and people had come into contact with others who had the virus? There will certainly be chaos in the country if the number of cases increase because we held Easter celebrations,” he said.

Explaining the cost to businesses with the celebration called off, Nana Agyeman said it was inestimable.
“A lot of businessmen and women plan ahead of time during this period and you can imagine the investment they have made towards the Easter.

On behalf of the chiefs, we wish to apologise to everyone who has been affected by the decision,” he said.

The Abetifi Chief explained that several consultations with the GTA and other stakeholders were done before the final decision was taken.

“We know the impact the celebration has on the people of Kwahu. We want the celebration to be one of the biggest in Africa, attracting huge numbers of tourists from all over the world,” he said.