The Ghana Tourism Development Company (GTDC), represented by its Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of Operations, Ms. Felicity Nelson, engaged H.E. Ronald Micallef, High Commissioner of Malta to Ghana, to explore opportunities for tourism investment and collaboration between Ghana and Malta.
The engagement focused on key areas including tourism investment, Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE), concerts and festivals, heritage and museum development, hospitality skills training, private-sector partnerships and reciprocal destination promotion.
A major focus of the discussion was attracting investment into Ghana’s tourism sector, including opportunities around key GTDC projects and the development of infrastructure required to position Ghana as a competitive destination for major international conferences, concerts, festivals and other large-scale events.
Ms. Nelson and H.E. Micallef also explored opportunities for Ghana to draw lessons from Malta’s tourism development, particularly in heritage preservation, cultural tourism and destination management. Malta’s experience demonstrates how strategic investment in culture, heritage and tourism can generate significant economic value, employment and international visibility.
Hospitality skills development was another important area of discussion. The engagement considered opportunities for collaboration with tourism and hospitality training institutions in Malta to promote professional training, knowledge exchange and improved service standards within Ghana’s tourism industry.
The meeting further highlighted the potential for stronger private-sector collaboration and reciprocal destination promotion, with a focus on increasing Ghana’s visibility in Malta and encouraging more Maltese travellers to consider Ghana as a preferred African destination.
Malta, with a population of about 588,000, welcomed more than four million international visitors in 2025, demonstrating the significant contribution tourism can make to a country's economy. Its experience with Valletta, which was designated European Capital of Culture in 2018, also provides valuable lessons in leveraging heritage and creativity for destination development.
Reflecting on the engagement, Ms. Felicity Nelson highlighted the potential of positioning Kumasi as an African Capital of Culture in 2028, leveraging the city’s rich Ashanti heritage, festivals, traditional craftsmanship, music, cuisine and creative industries to attract visitors and investment while creating opportunities for local businesses and communities.
This ambition aligns with H.E. President John Dramani Mahama’s Black Star Experience, which seeks to harness Ghana’s culture, heritage, creativity and tourism assets to attract visitors and investment, create jobs and expand economic opportunities for Ghanaians.
For GTDC, strengthening strategic international partnerships such as the engagement with Malta forms part of the Company’s broader mandate to translate Ghana’s tourism potential into sustainable investments, businesses and employment opportunities.
Through investment facilitation, destination development and strategic partnerships, GTDC remains committed to supporting the growth of a competitive tourism industry that encourages visitors to choose Ghana, stay longer, explore more and spend more, while ensuring that Ghanaian businesses, creatives, young people and communities benefit from the country’s growing tourism economy.
Story By: Lein Tetteh
The Ghana Tourism Development Company (GTDC), represented by its Deputy Chief Executive Officer in charge of Operations, Ms. Felicity Nelson, engaged H.E. Ronald Micallef, High Commissioner of Malta to Ghana, to explore opportunities for tourism investment and collaboration between Ghana and Malta.
The engagement focused on key areas including tourism investment, Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE), concerts and festivals, heritage and museum development, hospitality skills training, private-sector partnerships and reciprocal destination promotion.
A major focus of the discussion was attracting investment into Ghana’s tourism sector, including opportunities around key GTDC projects and the development of infrastructure required to position Ghana as a competitive destination for major international conferences, concerts, festivals and other large-scale events.
Ms. Nelson and H.E. Micallef also explored opportunities for Ghana to draw lessons from Malta’s tourism development, particularly in heritage preservation, cultural tourism and destination management. Malta’s experience demonstrates how strategic investment in culture, heritage and tourism can generate significant economic value, employment and international visibility.
Hospitality skills development was another important area of discussion. The engagement considered opportunities for collaboration with tourism and hospitality training institutions in Malta to promote professional training, knowledge exchange and improved service standards within Ghana’s tourism industry.
The meeting further highlighted the potential for stronger private-sector collaboration and reciprocal destination promotion, with a focus on increasing Ghana’s visibility in Malta and encouraging more Maltese travellers to consider Ghana as a preferred African destination.
Malta, with a population of about 588,000, welcomed more than four million international visitors in 2025, demonstrating the significant contribution tourism can make to a country's economy. Its experience with Valletta, which was designated European Capital of Culture in 2018, also provides valuable lessons in leveraging heritage and creativity for destination development.
Reflecting on the engagement, Ms. Felicity Nelson highlighted the potential of positioning Kumasi as an African Capital of Culture in 2028, leveraging the city’s rich Ashanti heritage, festivals, traditional craftsmanship, music, cuisine and creative industries to attract visitors and investment while creating opportunities for local businesses and communities.
This ambition aligns with H.E. President John Dramani Mahama’s Black Star Experience, which seeks to harness Ghana’s culture, heritage, creativity and tourism assets to attract visitors and investment, create jobs and expand economic opportunities for Ghanaians.
For GTDC, strengthening strategic international partnerships such as the engagement with Malta forms part of the Company’s broader mandate to translate Ghana’s tourism potential into sustainable investments, businesses and employment opportunities.
Through investment facilitation, destination development and strategic partnerships, GTDC remains committed to supporting the growth of a competitive tourism industry that encourages visitors to choose Ghana, stay longer, explore more and spend more, while ensuring that Ghanaian businesses, creatives, young people and communities benefit from the country’s growing tourism economy.
Story By: Lein Tetteh