GTA’s Income Falls 18.6% as Government Funding Slumps

The Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) recorded a significant decline in its total income in 2025, with revenue falling by 18.6% amid a sharp reduction in government funding.

According to the 2025 State Ownership Report, the Authority’s total income dropped from GH¢71.57 million in 2024 to GH¢58.26 million in 2025.

The report attributes the decline largely to a substantial reduction in Government of Ghana (GoG) grants, which fell from GH¢43.98 million in 2024 to GH¢21.39 million in 2025.

Although the Authority’s other income increased from GH¢27.59 million to GH¢36.87 million, the increase was not enough to compensate for the decline in government grants.

The report also revealed that the GTA recorded zero internally generated funds (IGF) in both 2024 and 2025.

This, according to the assessment, points to a structural weakness in the Authority’s ability to independently generate revenue and highlights its continued reliance on external funding sources.

The decline in income was accompanied by a reduction in total expenditure.

GTA’s total expenditure fell from GH¢78.09 million in 2024 to GH¢59.26 million in 2025, representing a 24.11% reduction.

The reduction was mainly driven by a sharp fall in service activity expenses, which declined from GH¢36.60 million to GH¢12.17 million.

However, personnel costs moved in the opposite direction, increasing from GH¢29.25 million to GH¢33.64 million.

The figures suggest that fixed personnel-related costs remained high despite the reduction in the Authority’s operational scale.

The GTA remained in deficit in both years, although the deficit narrowed from GH¢6.52 million in 2024 to GH¢0.99 million in 2025.

The report said the improvement was largely driven by expenditure cuts rather than growth in revenue.

The Authority’s net margin also improved from negative 9.12% in 2024 to negative 1.71% in 2025.

Despite this improvement, the report described the GTA as structurally loss-making and financially dependent on external funding.

The report further highlighted concerns over efficiency, noting that the personnel cost ratio increased from 40.88% of total income in 2024 to 57.73% in 2025.

This means salaries and related personnel costs consumed a substantially larger portion of the Authority’s income.

According to the report, the development suggests declining operational flexibility and worsening cost efficiency.

The GTA’s business model remains centred on the regulation and promotion of tourism enterprises, with its mandate covering the regulation, supervision, promotion and development of Ghana’s tourism industry.

The Authority was established under the Tourism Act, 2011 (Act 817).

Its stated vision is to make Ghana a leading tourism destination in Africa through sustainable tourism development, while its mission is to promote, regulate and develop a sustainable and competitive tourism industry through innovation, partnerships, destination development and inclusive participation.