Dr. Edward Ackah-Nyameke, President of the Ghana Hotels Association, has called on the government to assist hospitality companies in better managing their operating expenses, which impact customers.
“The cost build-up is extremely significant, and that shows in the prices that we charge,” Dr. Ackah-Nyameke said on the Citi Breakfast Show.
“The cost is very high, so if we don’t get this support from the government then we will continue to have these challenges and the industry will not pick up in terms of employment, as the Minister [of Tourism] wants to achieve in the next two or three years.”
Over 20 institutions, including the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Ghana Tourism Authority, the Food and Drugs Authority, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Immigration Service, the Registrar General’s Department, the Ghana National Fire Service, and the District Assemblies, have added separate levies to the list of hospitality operator charges and fees.
Furthermore, Dr. Ackah-Nyameke pointed out that employees’ wages contribute to the company’s operating costs.
“The hotel has a large workforce because you can tell how many employees there are by looking at the number of rooms,” he said.
“Higher [utility] rates for commercial operators have a direct impact on our business,” he said.
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Concerns that the high prices in the hotel sector do not represent the quality of services were distorted by rare unfavourable reports, according to Dr. Ackah-Nyameke.
“The point is that one bad experience may cover 20 excellent ones, and this seems to be the case in our nation when it comes to services…
The system seems to be dominated by the few negatives we receive.”
“The issue we have is that we don’t appear to have that uniform level of service throughout the country,” he acknowledged.
“If the GTA really assists us in achieving those goals throughout the nation, we will have more positive tales to share in the future than we have now,” Dr. Ackah-Nyameke added.
The effect of the COVID-19 epidemic on the tourist and hotel sector is still being felt.
Source: CITINEWSROOM
