Diasporans citizenship acquisition law in offing—GTA CEO
A law to facilitate acquisition of citizenship by diasporans is currently being formulated by the government.
Dubbed the ‘Homeland Return Act,’ the law is being worked on by the Ministry of the Interior, Ministry of Tourism, Creative Arts and Culture and the Africa Diasporan Forum.
When passed, the Act would enable the diasporans to be granted their Ghanaian citizenship while they are still abroad.
Mr Akwasi Agyeman, Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), said the Act would give legal backing to citizenship granted people in the diaspora and encourage more to relocate and invest in the country.
He was speaking at this year’s Ghana Tourism Authority Ladies Club Congress held in Accra yesterday.
The event which concluded the Ladies Week celebration was on the theme “Beyond the Return, Beyond the Pandemic, the New Woman.”
As part of efforts to promote tourism and increase visits into the county, he said, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration was in the process of rolling out an e-Visa system to address all visa acquisition hurdles foreigners face.
He said the GTA’s 10-year development plan would focus on improving tourism facilities across the country.
Additionally, he explained that the Beyond the Return initiative would build co-ordination with other state agencies and departments, including the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) in selling Ghana’s tourism potentials.
“Beyond the Return will ensure synchronization of activities of all agencies to sell Ghana’s tourism potential to attract investors,” he added.
Minister of Tourism, Creative Arts and Culture, Barbara Oteng-Gyasi, called on the Ladies Club to empower and support women in the tourism industry to enable them to grow their businesses to improve revenue and create jobs.
She said women constituted a significant number of key players in the tourism industry, hence their inputs were necessary in repositioning the sector for maximum gains.
She urged them to develop strategies to support women-owned businesses to grow and forge partnerships with other businesses in the sub-region to make Ghana a tourism hub in the continent.
“Let us use our roles to create jobs and enhance economic development. Let us work hard to empower ourselves to be able to support other women in the tourism value chain,” she added.
President of the Ladies Club, Emma Rachel Akua Oduro, said the group was committed to work hand in hand with the relevant authorities to maximise the tourism industry’s contribution to Ghana’s economy.
BY CLAUDE NYARKO ADAMS
