Skills gap threatens tourism sector growth – Coconut Grove CEO

By Kingsley Webora TANKEH

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Coconut Grove Regency Hotels, Ralph Ayitey, has warned that Ghana’s ambition to become a tourism powerhouse will fail without a “conscious”  effort to bridge a critical skills gap between middle and high level management in the hospitality sector.

He made these remarks at his hotel’s Staff Dinner and Awards Night in Accra. Speaking at the event, Mr. Ayitey said as government touts the Black Star Experience as its flagship tourism initiative, it is imperative to support skills development in the sector for the initiative to achieve tangible results.

The former Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) Treasurer called for establishing a National Hotel Training Institute to equip the sector with highly skilled labour that will be able to render services which meet global standards.

Mr. Ayitey said the issue is not merely an operational challenge for hotels but a threat to the nation’s competitiveness. His call highlights a growing rift between the sector’s rapid growth and supply of well-resourced human capital.

“It is important that we are deliberate about certain policies. It is very, very important to consciously set up a hotel training institute that will churn out supervisors and managers to fill the vacancies which exist,” he stated.

He called for a certified institution that can standardise training, elevate pedagogy and produce a steady pipeline of management-ready talent for the entire industry.

The Black Star Experience aims to boost tourist arrivals and the entire tourism economy. However, industry players argue that world-class infrastructure and marketing will falter without world-class service delivery – a gap that can be filled by only highly trained professionals, not just willing staff.

“We have to ensure that we are competitive. What gives us an edge is the ability of our staff and personnel to deliver seamless service,” Mr. Ayitey stated.

When pressed on whether current services in the industry meet global standards, he maintained a diplomatic stance by saying: “As human as we are, it’s important that consistently you train. You want to go beyond excellence”.

As tourism continues to contribute significantly in Ghana’s services-led GDP growth, Mr Ayitey urged government to leverage the people’s hospitable inclinations to spur growth in the sector, calling it a “low-hanging fruit”.

The services sector continues to anchor growth, expanding by 5.5 percent year-on-year in October 2025 and accounting for nearly three-quarters of total economic expansion during the month. The sector contributed about 2.8 percentage points to the month’s overall 3.8 percent growth rate, according to provisional GDP data released by Ghana Statistical Service (GSS).

However, he drew a thin line between the innate friendliness of Ghanaians and professional excellence in the hospitalitysector.

“We are not talking about somebody being nice and smiling to you, offering you a Pepsi when you really want a Coke. We are talking about knowing and understanding what the customer needs and wants are and satisfying them at a profit,” he explained.

He maintained that high-spending international tourists and business travellers have choices; hence their repeat business and positive reviews hinge on  meeting global benchmarks – which are taught, not inherited.

Mr. Ayitey’s fervent push suggests that private sector investment in upskilling the hospitality sector, while vital, is insufficient to meet the scale of national ambition.

Dr. Nana Kweku Ndoum, president of Groupe Ndoum – owner of Coconut Grove Regency Hotels, underscored the significance of hard-working human capital, calling staff the “greatest asset” as he awarded some hotel workers.

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