The Impact of the Film Industry on Ghana Tourism

The film industry has a huge impact on the development of tourism. Statistics indicate that domestic tourism benefits more from the local film industry compared to international tourism. Films, documentaries, TV productions, and commercials motivate people to visit the locations seen in the content screened and explore new sites. Film tourism is an amazing tool for marketing various tourist attractions and creating more product and community entrepreneur development opportunities. Some of the benefits include more trips to various attraction sites within Ghana. Tourists are motivated to visit theatres and watch more live performances.

The Ghanaian tourism authority requested film producers to promote the great country’s image and make it a recognized film tourism hub in Africa for foreign filmmakers. The goal is to motivate many people to choose Ghana as their preferred destination to shoot films for the worldwide market. The Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Film Authority, Mrs. Juliet Yaa Asantewaa Asante, made a request in Accra during a meeting with the Ghana Tourism Authority, Creative Arts, to the film industry to reach a wider audience.

The Meeting was to discuss how to tap into each other’s space, learn in the creative arts and film industries. According to Mrs. Juliet Yaa Asantewaa, the film has great power to promote the country compared to any other marketing, attracting many tourists to the nation. Besides, the film is able to boost the tourism sector and increase the gross domestic product across the country.

The Chief Executive Officer of Ghana Film Authority emphasized that Ghana’s film sector is resilient and ready to step forward into a position where international filmmakers will choose Ghana as their preferred shooting destination. “Ghana is very well positioned; we have everything. We have great locations, a great skillset, a good landscape, and the cost of production is relatively low compared to other parts of the world. “We are working on tax incentives as well, and we hope by the end of the year we’ll be done to enable investors to make more return on their investment,” she noted.

Mrs. Juliet Yaa Asantewaa noted that Africa will be the youngest continent in several years to come because the global youth would 2060 increase by 40%. “creating content for Africans, by the global black community and narrating our stories ourselves to the world is very crucial to the conversation.”

The Chief Executive Officer expressed her happiness concerning the film industry’s progress and called for more collaborative efforts to promote ‘film tourism’ to revive Ghana’s film industry while promoting tourism.

The Deputy Chief Executive Officer, GTA, Mr. Ben Anane Nsiah, insisted on the demand for Ghana to shape its destination opinion and try to publicize a good image of the country to motivate people to consider the destination worth visiting. “Be proud of what you do. The influence of film, as in the soft things that make life exciting, has a lot to do with changing minds and perspectives. And you have a great job to do as you become great producers and filmmakers. Remember that you have a mission to portray the African continent in the way it must be,” he said.
Research studies indicate that at least 60 percent of the current and potential international tourists visiting Ghana have seen at least one of the local films. In a demonstration of the power of film to raise the profile of Ghana and the influence, a film has in destination choices for tourists, more than two-thirds of the tourists questioned agreed.

Catch up with the latest Ghanaian shows on social media platforms, Netflix, ShowMax, and TV. Besides, you can follow your favorite actors and actresses on social media platforms to know more about the latest shows and films.