Home General How to spark a global movement: Ghana’s ‘Year of Return’ welcomes 1m...

How to spark a global movement: Ghana’s ‘Year of Return’ welcomes 1m visitors

By
caleb
-
3496
154

Tourism is big business. Globally, it accounts for more than 10% of GDP. According to the World Travel & Tourism Council, 1 out of 5 of all jobs created in the last 5 years was in tourism.

But on the African continent, it accounts for only 3.6% of GDP. With its massive growth and job creating potential, it’s no wonder why African governments are trying to increase tourism to their nations. None has done it as well as Ghana. The “Year of Return” has hit a chord.

In January of 2019, the Ghana Tourism Authority projected that “Year of Return” programming would bring 500,000 diasporans to visit the country over the course of the year. The actual number has well exceeded expectations. The Ghana Tourism Authority reports that there have already been 750,000 foreign visitors in 2019 and that number is expected to top 1M before the year ends.

Koshie Mills has played a part in this success. Born in Ghana, raised in the UK, and living in America, Mills can understand the perspective of Africans living at home and abroad. Her children are American on paper but grew up Ghanaian in spirit. The food in their home was Ghanaian. They were raised with Ghanaian values. And even though they had never been to Ghana, if you asked them where they were from, they would respond “Ghana”.

In 2016, Mills decided that it was time for them to actually see where they came from. The family spent a month in Ghana. They met their grandparents. They sparked a movement. “Their reaction when they came galvanized me. More American youth need to come to visit Africa. It sparked such a life in my sons’ eyes,” said Mills.

A trip to Ghana can change a person, but how did this trip help spark a movement? Mills’ sons are all successful Hollywood actors. Kofi Siriboe stars in the hit Queen Sugar, Kwesi Boakye is most well-known for his role in Tyler Perry’s film I Can Do Bad All Myself and Kwame Boateng, the eldest brother, has been seen on countless TV shows and films such as Not Easily Broken. Their trip to Ghana was covered in Essence magazine and ever since their first trip, the family has come back every December bringing more and more friends each time.

This can potentially explain hundreds of visitors, but not hundreds-of-thousands. It cannot just be a trio of famous brothers visiting their home that fueled this movement.

“We have to figure out way for them to come back to the soil. There is something healing about it.”

Mills, the Ghanaian Ambassador for Film, Art, and Culture has an idea of why traveling to Ghana has resonated so deeply with so many people around the world. Traveling to Ghana is not just about visiting the beaches and tasting the food. It is about healing. Ghana was the point-of-no-return for many kidnapped Africans. According to UNESCO, there are 4 slave castles and 23 slave forts still visible along Ghana’s coast. Mills believes that is it important for their descendants to visit the literal or symbolic place where their ancestors entered slavery. “We have to figure out way for them to come back to the soil. There is something healing about it. You don’t even know it’s there, just because you never touched down,” said Mills.

Mills knows the healing power of connection and dialogue. Her family’s visit to Ghana also inspired her turn her dream for The Diaspora Dialogues into reality. The Diaspora Dialogues are a forum where people from the diaspora and the continent can have space to “share our trauma and heal it.” They were aired on The Africa Channel in 2018 but have received such positive feedback that they will be more widely distributed through digital platforms in North America, Africa, and Europe in 2020.

Three famous sons of Ghana visited their home. This brought Ghana into the media spotlight, inspiring members of the global African diaspora to return to the continent. As more people visited, more people were inspired to come. But Ghana isn’t the first African country to be visited by influential celebrities with African roots. Akon, for example, has visited his native Senegal many times in recent years. The impact on tourism has not been the same.

“What changed it was the welcome,” said Mills. The UN Declaration is what was needed to inspire people to come now. “Sometimes people just need to hear I’m welcome,” added Mills. While she and her sons were an inspiration for many people to visit, “it was a crescendo of so many voices that put Ghana on the map.” She hopes that the success of Ghana’s “Year of Return” can help many other African governments to come up with similar initiatives. She is just wrapping up a trip to Uganda at invitation of their Ministry of Tourism. So, while hundreds of thousands of people from around the world will be ringing in the new decade with millions of Ghanaians, maybe 2020 will be the year of Uganda.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

154 COMMENTS

  20. Destek hizmeti; Giriş yapmadınız. Lütfen giriş yapın veya kayıt olun. Aktif Konular Cevaplanmamış Konular.
    Melbourne Renegades vs Sydney Sixers Dailymotion Songs.
    Zert Zombie Action Figure Head Sculpts. Melbourne Renegades vs Sydney Sixers Dailymotion Songs.

    Zert Zombie Action Figure Head Sculpts.

  28. İlkyardım anında verlmesi gereken bir yardımdır
    ve bu yardımın bir parçası da cankurtaranı çağırmaktır.
    Ambulans, çağrıldığında, olay yerine en kısa zamanda ulaşarak,
    en kısa sürede gerekli acil bakımın verilmesini sağlar.
    Cankurtaranla gelenlerin vereceği acil bakımın kalitesi,
    olay yerinde yapılan ilkyardımla artar.

  70. Главная страница » Красота » Какое лучшее средство для роста ресниц и бровей? — Отзывы, рекомендации А ведь даже самые щадящие косметические средства трудно назвать полезными для кожи. Средства для роста и укрепления ресниц – это инновационные технологии ведущих производителей для красоты натуральных волосков. Какая польза, результаты и какой препарат выбрать читайте в нашей статье. Для укрепления и роста ресниц в домашних условиях вы можете приготовить полезный масляный коктейль. Для лечения ресниц подойдут любые маски которые основаны на витаминах. Укрепляя ресницы, не забудьте укрепить и кожу век. Для этого чаще всего используется массажное масло. Чтобы его изготовить, достаточно добавить в растительное масло нектар алоэ и накрошенную мелко петрушку. После этого, перемешав, массажными движениями нанесите эту масочку на глаза. Тщательно размажьте, и не смывайте 10-15 минут. https://wiki-view.win/index.php?title=Туши_для_бровей_фото Для ефективного зміцнення вій і відновлення після нарощування професійні косметологи рекомендують використовувати спеціальні сироватки, бальзами та натуральні олії. Дотримуючись усіх рекомендацій з використання косметичного засобу, ваші вії будуть довгими та густими впродовж тривалого часу. Следующая статья: Масло для роста ресниц. Эффективно ли его применение? → Касторовое масло также полезно для роста ваших ресниц. Просто наносите это масло на ресницы два раза в день для достижения наилучшего результата. Для нанесения сыворотки в комплекте идет кисточка, как у жидкой подводки. Нужно просто провести ей вдоль линии роста верхних ресниц и закрыть глаза. Средство равномерно распределится. Действенность состава подтверждается отзывами женщин. Сыворотка восстанавливает даже сильно поврежденные ресницы. Минус – средство дорогое, а его нежелательно хранить дольше месяца после вскрытия флакона.

  100. İstanbul, Türkiye’nin ekonomik ve ticari merkezi olarak, hem bireylerin hem de şirketlerin vergi yükümlülüklerinin oldukça yoğun olduğu bir şehirdir. Vergi mevzuatındaki karmaşık düzenlemeler ve sık sık yapılan değişiklikler, mükelleflerin zaman zaman hukuki desteğe ihtiyaç duymasına yol açmaktadır. İstanbul vergi avukatları, hem gerçek hem tüzel kişilere, vergi uyuşmazlıklarında profesyonel danışmanlık ve temsil hizmeti sunarak, olası cezaların ve kayıpların önüne geçilmesine yardımcı olur.

  109. Great goods from you, man. I have understand your stuff previous to and you’re just extremely wonderful. I really like what you have acquired here, certainly like what you’re stating and the way in which you say it. You make it enjoyable and you still take care of to keep it sensible. I can’t wait to read much more from you. This is actually a terrific web site.

  110. You could certainly see your skills in the work you write. The world hopes for even more passionate writers like you who are not afraid to say how they believe. Always go after your heart.

  111. Thanks for discussing your ideas listed here. The other issue is that any time a problem appears with a personal computer motherboard, people should not take the risk associated with repairing the item themselves for if it is not done right it can lead to permanent damage to all the laptop. It is almost always safe to approach your dealer of the laptop for your repair of motherboard. They have technicians who definitely have an know-how in dealing with mobile computer motherboard troubles and can carry out the right analysis and accomplish repairs.

  112. I can’t believe how amazing this article is! The author has done a phenomenal job of delivering the information in an engaging and educational manner. I can’t thank her enough for offering such valuable insights that have certainly enlightened my awareness in this topic. Kudos to her for creating such a work of art!

  113. The heart of your writing while appearing reasonable initially, did not work properly with me personally after some time. Someplace within the paragraphs you actually managed to make me a believer but only for a while. I still have got a problem with your jumps in assumptions and you might do well to fill in all those gaps. In the event that you can accomplish that, I would definitely end up being fascinated.

  117. Hey, I think your blog might be having browser compatibility issues. When I look at your blog site in Safari, it looks fine but when opening in Internet Explorer, it has some overlapping. I just wanted to give you a quick heads up! Other then that, superb blog!

  119. Hi, Neat post. There’s a problem with your web site in internet explorer, would check this? IE still is the market leader and a large portion of people will miss your magnificent writing due to this problem.

  120. I have observed that car insurance corporations know the vehicles which are at risk from accidents along with risks. They also know what style of cars are inclined to higher risk and the higher risk they have got the higher your premium price. Understanding the straightforward basics associated with car insurance will allow you to choose the right style of insurance policy that can take care of the needs you have in case you happen to be involved in an accident. Thank you for sharing the particular ideas with your blog.

  121. Thanks for your posting. Another factor is that being a photographer will involve not only trouble in catching award-winning photographs but in addition hardships in getting the best camera suited to your requirements and most especially situations in maintaining the caliber of your camera. This can be very real and obvious for those professional photographers that are into capturing the nature’s engaging scenes : the mountains, the particular forests, the wild or seas. Visiting these exciting places surely requires a dslr camera that can live up to the wild’s nasty conditions.

  126. I am no longer sure the place you’re getting your info, but great topic. I needs to spend a while learning more or figuring out more. Thanks for fantastic information I used to be in search of this information for my mission.

  127. Good day! This is kind of off topic but I need some help from an established blog. Is it hard to set up your own blog? I’m not very techincal but I can figure things out pretty quick. I’m thinking about making my own but I’m not sure where to begin. Do you have any points or suggestions? Appreciate it

  128. Please let me know if you’re looking for a article author for your weblog. You have some really good articles and I believe I would be a good asset. If you ever want to take some of the load off, I’d absolutely love to write some articles for your blog in exchange for a link back to mine. Please shoot me an e-mail if interested. Cheers!

  131. Thanks for your post. One other thing is always that individual states have their unique laws that affect people, which makes it very hard for the the legislature to come up with a fresh set of rules concerning foreclosures on homeowners. The problem is that every state provides own legislation which may interact in an unwanted manner in terms of foreclosure insurance plans.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here