The newly elected National Executives of the Ghana Hotels Association (GHA) have been inducted into the office to steer the affairs of the association for the next four years.
The executives were elected during the association's biennial conference in Wa in line with its constitution.
Nine of the old executives retained their positions while two were newly elected.
The elected executives are Dr Edward Ernest Ackah-Nyamike Jnr. President; Mr Cosmas Alhassan, 1st Vice President; Mrs Juliet Abena Fosuhemaa Taylor, 2nd Vice President; and Madam Ellen Gandaa, Secretary and Mr Alaley Ishmael Assistant Secretary.
The rest are Mr Philip Akey, Treasurer, Mrs Martha Sapathy, Financial Secretary, and Mr Nelson Ricky Adom, Trustee; Dr Von L.L Asigri, Trustee and Mr Kwame Appiah Danquah, Trustee and Mr Benjamin Aidoo, also Trustee.
The induction was held in Ho in the Volta Region and coincided with the association's National Executive Council meeting, which deliberated on a number of issues of the association including its programme for the year.
Mr Ackah-Nyamike Jnr, President of the association on behalf of his colleagues' executives thanked members for the confidence reposed in them.
He said they would continue to build on what they were doing in their first term in office and develop new measures to champion the progress of the association.
Mr Ackah-Nyamike Jnr said the vision to work with effectiveness to resource the association and properly positioned it would still be pursued.
The President said they would not relent in their efforts to create an environment that allowed the association to flourish and enhance the welfare of its members.
He called on the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) to make membership in the hotels association mandatory for all operators, disclosing that a proposal had already been sent to the GTA to that effect.
Mr Ackah-Nyamike Jnr said the hotel industry was a sensitive one and would not be in the interest of the country and the tourism sector if hotels were allowed to operate without belonging to any association.
He said activities and operations of hotels could be easily monitored and well guided when they belong to an association.
The President disclosed that the GHA had embraced the domestic tourism concepts and was working to promote domestic tourism and urged all members to be committed to the course.
Mr Alexander Nketia, Volta Regional Director of the GTA said they were providing capacity building to hotels in the region to improve their service delivery as part of measures to revamp the industry.
He said his outfit would continue its monitoring to ensure that hotels in the region did not operate below standard, warning that any hotel that failed to meet the requirements would be closed.
