Monday, March 12, 2012

Messages from Mumee, A Guest Post


Ghana is developing its tourism industry and has made a great start.  Land for parks, preserves, forests has been set aside to prevent it from being cleared and developed.  Hotels and guesthouses are being designed and planned for the time when the economy picks up. Ghana is just as prone to the ups and downs of the world's economy as the rest of the world and right now everything is on hold. Ghana is looking for investment from other countries and many of the current road  projects are being funded by loans from China, Brazil and Canada. A new super highway, a six lane divided highway in Accra, is called the Bush Highway for Pres. Bush 2.  No explanation needed as to who provided the funding.

If Ghana hopes to compete in the world for tourism several major things need to change...I visited several eco tourism sites that had so many plastic water bottles and water sachets strewn about that it was hard to visualize exactly what I was there to see.  I only saw litter bins at one site in my entire trip and most people just toss their refuse on the ground and claim it is the Ghana way.   Air pollution is exacerbated by the cooking and field fires which cause a murky haze and obliterate the views.  Last but not least is the lack of public toilet facilities throughout the country.. Men urinate wherever they please, often in full view of everyone. A canal of sewage runs along side most streets.  Granted sanitation is a big investment in infrastructure, but a start with some recycle bins and porta potties would go a long way to making this country more pleasant as a tourist site.

Final Verdict: Not quite ready for prime tourism

No comments:

Post a Comment