The Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) and the Beyond the Return (BTR) Secretariat, announce the official call for entries for event organisers and promoters to submit their proposals for inclusion in the calendar of events for the ‘December in GH’ campaign for 2023.
This announcement comes earlier than previous years as the authority anticipates the increase in visitors to Ghana seeking to plan their trip with ample time to coordinate the activities and festivals they wish to include in their itineraries for December.
Since 2019, ‘December in GH’ has been a strong driver of tourism during the busy December season for travel to Ghana.
‘December in GH’ is coordinated by the Beyond the Return (BTR) Secretariat and invites all interested event organisers seeking to have their programs endorsed as an official event for December in GH to submit a formal proposal to the team. Proposals should be for events taking place from November 1, 2023 through January 2024. The office is encouraging event organizers to create events that would bring together the global African diaspora, continental Africans, and the local Ghanaian community.
According to the CEO of the Authority, Akwasi Agyeman, who doubles as the coordinator of the Beyond The Return project, the process of event endorsement also involves a lot of stakeholder engagements with other agencies of state. He added ,“We are anticipating a very fruitful and successful campaign this year due to the large number of unsolicited new event proposals that we have already received. The momentum keeps growing,”
Annabelle McKenzie, Director of the Beyond the Return Secretariat said “We’ve seen more of the diaspora engaging with Ghana through events, business investments and giving back to the community. And with the global spotlight of events like the Global Citizen Festival last year and the recent visit of the U.S. Vice President, it has cast an even bigger spotlight on Ghana.”
The first batch of official calendar of events for ‘December in GH’ will be released in the middle of June 2023 after submitted proposals have been reviewed by GTA for endorsement. All proposals must be submitted before Monday June 5, 2023, using the official form at this link: https://forms.gle/JwQ7TbphReMMFfTm6
‘Beyond the Return’ is a ten-year initiative with the theme ‘A Decade of African Renaissance.’ and a foundation of seven pillars. Each pillar is significant in the mission of continued engagement with the African diaspora, continental Africans and Ghanaians.
The seven pillars are as follows: Experience Ghana, Celebrate Ghana, Give Back Ghana, Invest in Ghana, Brand Ghana, Diaspora Pathways to Ghana and Promote Pan African Heritage and Innovation. All event organizers must consider how their event aligns with at least one of the foundational pillars.
More information about the Beyond the Return initiative can be found on the website www.beyondthereturngh.com.
