There are high hopes that the economy of Ghana will hit a record high by 2019 from 3.6% in 2014, according to the World Bank in its latest Africa Pulse report which experts believe will foster growth in both the tourism and real estate sectors.
In addition, aid grant from the United States to reform water, sanitation and land management is expected to increase growth even further as infrastructure improves.
“Ghana is a nation on a rapid up. It has halved its 1990 poverty level and in 2008 officially graduated from Least Developed to Middle Income Country status. Much of this positivity stems from one of the fastest growing tourism sub regions in the world and active encouragement of substantial foreign investment,” said Adam Cornwell, managing director of Feltrim International which promotes real estate in the sub-region.
He added that as the country has abundant natural resources and medium to high rainfall, the aid flows have been needed to make the necessary improvements to cope with the influx of tourists. Agreements with the US Millennium Challenge Corporation will focus on some specific projects to help Ghana sustain its growing tourism industry.
From agreements between the government of Ghana and its aid sponsors, some $41.1 million will help make Ghana’s national regularity institutions financially sound and transparent and transform utilities into high performing commercial organizations.
Then an estimated $17.3 million will be used to refine Ghana’s legal and institutional environment to make it more attractive for large and small investors. Land information will become more reliable, land rights strengthened and land transactions made more efficient.
Experts believe that real estate development and tourism will increase as a direct result and around 13,000 jobs will be created. According to the latest official statistics, tourist arrivals continue growing at a rate of 20% per annum with 197,000 arriving in the first half of 2015, an increase of 27.5% against the same period in 2014. It is projected that Ghana will reach close to half a million tourists annually by close of year 2018 and almost one million by 2024.
The number of international hotels setting up in the country is also increasing year on year. With world renowned five star hotel chains Moevenpick and Kempinski establishing themselves in the heart of the county’s capital. Ghana was ranked in the top ten on Skyscanner’s list of emerging African destinations in 2014.
Hotel occupancy, according to the government, is currently 74% and there is no low season due to average daily temperatures consistently hovering between 21ºC and 30ºC which is warmer and more reliable than even the Canary Islands.
The country’s only international airport “Kotoka” now takes direct five and a half hour flights from Glasgow, Gatwick and Manchester and flights from Bristol and Stansted are to be added, giving visitors greater flexibility. Direct flights to Ghana are also in place from Lisbon, Madrid, Milan, Frankfurt, Brussels, and Boston. Passenger traffic across the country’s airports rose 11.2% year on year in 2014, from 1.6 million to 1.78 million.
For a limited time there are early investor discounts of 14% for cash buyers with prices starting from $73,300 for a one bedroom apartment and $325,500 for a detached three bedroom villa in prime areas in the capital city of Ghana.
Finance options of up to 84% are available, making ownership of a one bedroom apartment achievable with a 20% deposit. There are also rent and leaseback plans offering up to 7% fixed income with allowances for personal use.
With these options available in the country, experts believe the future of the tourism and real estate sector looks positive and that this will effectively lead to the growth of the Ghanaian economy as a whole.