Sixty-one frontline employees in the tourism sector have received French language instruction to improve their ability to communicate with tourists arriving from francophone nations in December.
The three-month program, which was organized by the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) as part of the Ghana CARES Obaatanpa project’s tourism component, also attempted to assist the frontline operators in developing a comprehension of French culture.
At a concluding ceremony held in Accra yesterday, certificates were given to the frontliners.
Due to a rise in tourists from francophone nations entering the nation, especially during the holiday seasons, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Akwasi Agyemang emphasized the importance of training frontline service providers, such as hotel staff.
He stated that Cote d’Ivoire and France were in the top 10 countries of entry into the nation in 2021, despite France falling to the 11th rank the previous year.
“We want to prepare our operators so that we can have a lot more Francophone countries in the top 10,” Mr. Agyemang stated.
The GTA CEO announced that the authority would be expanding into the area to involve additional frontliners, especially those along the borders, in light of the training.
“We registered the operators for the training and made it available to them.
We will travel to Tema, Kumasi, and other locations, particularly those near the borders, after this initial instruction, he said.
Operators should be motivated to learn French, Mr. Agyemang emphasized, in order to properly greet and assist customers from French-speaking nations.
“We believed it was imperative to situate ourselves for the francophone market, particularly for a nation encircled by French-speaking nations,” he clarified.
Customer service is ingrained in the curriculum to teach frontline staff how to greet French guests, according to the CEO of the GTA.
According to Mr. Agyemang, the GTA would collaborate with tourism industry operators to install French signage in all establishments.
In order to expand on the knowledge they had learned during the training, he urged the frontliners who had received technical training to continue learning French.
“Go forward and show an interest in the language.
Mr. Agyemang pleaded with them, “There are free lessons available on the internet that you can study from right now.
According to him, learning French could open doors for individuals in their careers and other settings, but it could also provide obstacles in their line of work.
Dentaa Amoateng, a board member of the GTA, urged the frontliners to pursue their French language studies seriously since it can lead to tutoring possibilities.
Speaking the language, according to her, might improve Ghanaian culture’s ability to be sold to French tourists.