GHANA: REDUCING POVERTY THROUGH TOURISM?

tourism is therefore a tool for poverty alleviation and social cohesion. The abject poverty in our rural areas could be reduced if tourism were to be developed. This is because most of our attraction sites are dotted in the rural areas, where poverty is prevalent. Tourists spend on accommodation, food, souvenirs and so on at places visited. However, the fact that tourists embark on return visits and sleep in the urban areas after visiting the sites does not augur well for poverty reduction. The provision of social amenities in such areas will therefore go a long way to open up these areas to entice tourists to spend days at the attraction areas.

Tourism also orientates the community towards new introductions, which may be positive or negative or both. Tourism never leaves a place without planting its footprints in there. It also makes a people conscious of their environmental cleanli ness, and good conservation practices in a very sustainable way, because so long as the community area is acceptable to the visitors, they will continue to arrive and drop some benefits to the host community.

It addresses the social and cultural issues of the community in a very positive way. In Ghana, tourism as a tool for poverty alleviation is not in doubt. What is in doubt is the understanding of the industry because not much by way of education as to what it is and is not is brought home to the Ghanaian society. Tourism enjoys a lot of global attention due to its economic