President Akufo-Addo has commissioned the Abetifi Stone Age Park to boost ecotourism in the Eastern Region.
He commended the chief executive officer of the park, Benjamin Addo, for the initiative and pledged the government’s support to expand the project.
The president said that the economic impact of ecotourism cannot be overemphasised.
He urged Ghanaians to protect the environment to help deal with illegal dumping of refuse.
The park, which sits on a 52-acre land has a cave where stone-age people lived for years, an artificial waterfall and other recreational facilities.
The deputy minister of tourism, arts and culture, Mark Okraku-Mantey, said since the inception of the “Year of Return” initiative in 2019, the country has witnessed significant increase in tourists. An increase of over one point five million tourists has injected more than three billion US dollars into the economy.
Okraku-Mantey added that, it has created job opportunities for the youth. This has reduced the unemployment rate in the country.
Addo said the park used to be a refuse dump but he had to use his initiative to turn it to what it has become.
It took years for the center to take shape. He hopes that other projects, like a museum, will be built later at the centre.
