Ghana leads its West African peers in the 2024 Travel and Tourism Development Index (TTDI) ranking by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
With a global TTDI ranking of 106th, Ghana outperforms peers such as Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, and Cameroon which recorded TTDI rankings of 112th, 114th, and 117th respectively.
According to the TTDI report by the World Economic Forum (WEF) factors considered in ranking countries include: enabling environment; Travel and Tourism Policy and enabling conditions; infrastructure and services; Travel and Tourism Resources; and Travel and Tourism Sustainability.
Travel and tourism are major contributors to Ghana’s GDP.
For instance, total receipts from tourism and international arrivals into Ghana grew to $3.8bn in 2023.
This was up from the $2.5bn total receipts recorded in the previous year – 2022.
According to the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, international arrivals to Ghana rose from 914,892 in 2022 to 1,148,002 in 2023.
The Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2024 report is the second edition of an index that evolved from the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) series, a flagship index of the World Economic Forum.
The TTDI measures the set of factors and policies that enable the sustainable and resilient development of travel and tourism (T&T).
While international tourist arrivals and T&T’s contribution to global GDP are expected to reach pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2024, the recovery has varied by region and segment.
Meanwhile, as the sector moves past the shock of COVID-19, it continues to deal with other external challenges, from growing macroeconomic, geopolitical and environmental risks to increased scrutiny of its sustainability and the application of new digital technologies such as big data and AI.
Given that T&T has historically accounted for a tenth of global GDP and employment, decision-makers in the sector and beyond must recognize the need for strategic and holistic approaches if they are to properly navigate increasingly complicated conditions and unlock T&T’s great potential to provide prosperity for communities around the world.