…As ECOWAS grace expo first time
The 8th edition of Accra Weizo, an annual travel expo, opened at the Accra City Hotel in Accra, the Ghanaian capital city, on June 27, 2025.
This year, solutions were dormant across the presentations and discussions among the high-profile industry speakers and panelists, than the usual challenges.
Among the solutions were those to boost seamless travel, cultural and trade exchanges across the region, considering the huge potential of the West African region.
From her over 400 million people, breathingtaking cultures, landscapes, natural and man-made attractions, to being home to the smartest and richest people in Africa, creative hub of Africa and huge youthful population and talent, the West African region has it all, as the participants sought for solutions to enable the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS) to leverage her huge potential to further grow the tourism industry to attract global tourists, better lives and impact the region’s economies.
The above further highlighted “Seamless Travel in West Africa: Opportunities and Challenges”, the theme of this year’s expo, which is organised by Akwaaba African Travel Market in collaboration with the Ghana Tourism Authority.
Also reflecting on the theme, in his opening speech, Ikechi Uko, CEO, Akwaaba African Travel Market, organisers of the Accra travel expo, noted that with her huge potential, West Africa can thrive if countries in the region engage in sustainable tourism, trade and cultural exchanges, hence a call for a truly borderless ECOWAS region.
He disclosed that ECOWAS started long before other economic blocs in Africa, but regretted that the region has not been able to leverage on her potential to grow tourism, like the successful examples from the East and Southern African blocs.
“We started Accra Weizo as a platform to boost travel and tourism in West Africa. We have done this for eight years now with some measure of success, though we need to achieve more,” Uko said.
He noted further that the theme speaks volumes on the need for collaborations among countries, government agencies and the private sector at boosting a borderless region, to ensure more travel exchanges within ECOWAS.
Uko also commended the new CEO at Ghana Tourism Authority and the ECOWAS Commission, which is participating in the expo for the first time.
In her keynote speech, Maame Efua Houadjeto, CEO, Ghana Tourism Authority, expressed her excitement over the efforts by the organisers of Accra Weizo to gather stakeholders on one platform to find solutions to challenges to seamless travel.
“Accra Weizo unites minds, people and destinations,” she said.
“It is a platform to rethink on strategies to leverage our collective huge potential to grow tourism in West Africa”.
For tourism to be seamless, she insisted that it must be people-oriented, environmentally focused, amid commitment by all stakeholders, especially governments to remove bottlenecks like high taxes, visa issues, expensive flights, poor road infrastructure and others.
In his goodwill message, Kobby Mensah, CEO, Ghana Tourism Development Company, noted that the huge responsibility placed on his shoulder to turn all his theories to practical gains for tourism, now he has crossed over to the government.
The professor, who attended last year’s event as a private sector participant, commended Uko’s boldness at tackling industry challenges, and called for all participants to go for such boldness in order to fully harness the huge potential of tourism across the ECOWAS region.
He assured on his commitment at helping students and the youth to be bold at taking advantage of the potential of tourism, especially by offering solutions to industry needs.
As well, Yvonne Donkor, president, Tour Operators Union of Ghana, called for more collaborations among stakeholders, while Gideon Asare, managing director, Adansi Travels, shared insights on why tourism stakeholders in the region should embrace AI.
While AI will not takeaway their jobs, Asare explained that it enhances productivity and is the future of work.
At a presentation by the ECOWAS Commission, Tony Elumelu, director, private sector, ECOWAS Commission, who represented Omar Touray, president of the commission, highlighted the feats of the commission, insisting that the commission has done well in its responsibility of making policies to enhance seamless travels, promote trade and cultural exchanges across the region, but the enforcement of policies, especially the Protocol on Free Movement, according to him, is domiciled with the member states of ECOWAS.
He regretted that most people do not know the provisions of the protocol and their rights, hence the poor treatment they receive at most entry points across ECOWAS land borders.
He pledges to report the feats of Accra Weizo to the commission, while looking forward to better participation and partnership in the future.
Also, at the panel discussion on seamless travel opportunities and challenges, the high-profile panelists at the event moderated by Olanma Ojukwu, CEO, GOTA Travels, Benin Republic, agreed that there is need for more collaborations, while calling on governments across the region to comply fully with ECOWAS Protocol on Free Movement of people, goods, residency, among others, as a sign of commitment to the region’s peaceful coexistence, industry stability and sustainable growth.
“We need more collaborations, and to develop packages that can be marketed uniformly by tour operators in the region,” Bolaji Mustapha, president, Nigeria Association of Tour Operators (NATOP), said.
Yvone Donkor, her Ghanaian counterpert, also called for the need to remove barriers such as visa issues, extortions at the border, high airfare, poor road infrastructure, among others.
The one-day expo also witnessed awards given out to deserving organisations and individuals for their contributions to tourism development in ECOWAS.
The honours included: Balafon Travel Award for promoting seamless travel in West Africa to the ECOWAS Commission, Best Tourism Marketing Agency in West Africa to The Gambia, while Royal Senchi Resort emerged the Best Resort in West Africa.
Other awardees are: Erad Tourism Senegal, GOTA Voyage Benin Republic, Jessica Travels, Kaya Tours, Doddy Travels, Adansi Travels, Goge Africa, and Accra City Hotel.
Special recognition award was given to Ebele Enemchukwu, former Mrs Tourism United Nations, and Susma Pan African Dance Ensemble, which entertained the audience at the expo.
One of the major highlights of this year’s event was awards given for the first time to travel and tourism champions, transport companies that have for years connected people across the region.
They include: Cross Country Transport Company, ABC Transport, Gambia Transport Service, among others.
But the participants will not forget in a hurry, Captain Solomon Quainoo, who took the Accra Weizo platform to share his ‘grass to grace’ story.
From mere dreaming of becoming a pilot, Quainoo, despite challenges and being an unwanted child, became the captain of the biggest passenger aircraft in the world.
He went further to document his uncommon feats in ‘Flutter Until You Fly’, his book, which was also presented to the audience.
The 8th Accra Weizo continues from June 29-30, 2025, with familiarisation tours to select destinations in Ghana.
