Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has hinted that Ghana will introduce a new electronic-Visa system next year to facilitate travel authorizations.
Dr Bawumia said the move will also push for a single air transport market under the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement.
The Vice President stated that the move forms part of efforts to increase the number of tourists as well as “businessmen†who plan to visit a particular country.
Dr Bawumia disclosed this at the First Regional Congress in Women in Tourism Empowerment Focus on Africa, being held in Accra today on the theme “Building the Future Togetherâ€, he said travellers will only need to complete an online application form with details, which makes the visa acquirement process, smoother and efficient.
“We want to make it easy for tourists to visit. Ghana will launch an e-Visa next year so it will be easy to travel. You won’t have to go to an embassy. Just apply online, get your visa and travel. We will launch that next yearâ€.
Notwithstanding, Mr Bawumia took the chance to emphasize on government’s commitment towards making the country a “business-friendly†one, especially with the use of technology.
He explained that the government is leveraging on technology to develop a number of creative methodologies including the total interoperability of Ghana’s financial system which seeks to make payments convenient for businessmen and tourists.
“We want to benefit economically from tourism. One of the major problems we have for tourists as they go across sometimes is payment and carrying cash around. Ghana is going completely digital. We have launched mobile payments interoperability and next month we are launching a universal QR code that will take Ghana cashless overtime. So the tourist can easily spend without worrying about changing money.†the Vice president added.
He noted that the digital address system introduced by the Akufo-Addo-led government is some of the efforts the government is making to support tourism which will allow tourists to easily locate all tourist sites.
READ ALSO:Visa partners with PalmPay to drive financial inclusion across Africa
Dr Bawumia tasked participants at the Congress to explore deeply, how Ghana can use tourism as a means to tackle some of her common development challenges, while working with all stakeholders to develop the industry and empower women in tourism, for sustainable development and improve the living standard of Ghanaians.
READ ALSO:US Embassy revokes visas of 71 Students attending UN confab