Abla Gomashie Rolls Out Reforms in Language Barrier, Hospitality Training

Minister of Tourism, Hon. Abla Dzifa Gomashie, has outlined significant progress made in 2025 in expanding hospitality training and standardizing Ghanaian languages, presenting a wide-ranging update covering the Hotel Catering and Tourism Training Institute (HOTCATT) and the Bureau of Ghana Languages (BGL).

According to the Minister, dozens of trainees benefited nationwide in 2025 alone from certificate courses, short courses, and structured industrial attachments, initiatives she said have helped improve service quality and boost youth employability within the hospitality and tourism sector.

Hon. Gomashie disclosed that HOTCATT has been accredited by the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET) to award proficiency certificates, with preparations currently underway to roll out the certification programme as soon as possible.

She further revealed that HOTCATT has launched partnership programmes with ABE Global, a UK-accredited training institute, aimed at training thousands of Ghanaians and other Africans across the continent in professional certificates for frontline hospitality roles and advanced diplomas for supervisory positions.

The Minister explained that HOTCATT is currently in the process of signing Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with all technical universities in Ghana, along with key regional universities, to enhance collaboration and establish these institutions as regional training centres.

She said the goal is to bring training closer to people nationwide through regional mobile training initiatives, reducing the need for trainees to travel long distances to access quality hospitality education.

“Between 2020 and 2026, since HOTCATT had been launched, more than 4,000 trainees and professionals have been trained” the Minister indicated.

She added that government is now targeting the training of at least 5,000 personnel annually beginning in 2026, with the process to scale up training capacity already underway.

Turning to language policy, Hon. Gomashie described the restructuring of the Bureau of Ghana Languages as one of her favourite areas of focus, noting that the NDC party’s campaign manifesto mandated the Bureau to standardise the development of Ghanaian languages. She said the Ministry has pursued this mandate through the Bureau’s ongoing work in promoting and developing Ghanaian languages.

She recalled that the Bureau organised the Ghana Languages Dialogue in November last year, bringing together major stakeholders with the aim of educating Ghanaians on the importance of speaking their native languages.

She explained that as part of its broader mandate, the BGL remains determined to develop as many Ghanaian languages as possible into reading and learning materials for use in schools.

Hon. Gomashie commended Member of Parliament for Ahanta West, Hon. Mavis Kuukua Bissue, for her collaboration with the Ministry and the Bureau of Ghana Languages in launching the orthography of the Ahanta language, a development she said would support the creation of reading and learning materials for the language.

She further disclosed that in June 2026, the Bureau launched three additional standardised orthographies for three languages, namely Kusaal, spoken by the Kusasi people in the Upper East Region, Likpakpaln, spoken by the Dagomba people, and Sisaali, spoken by the Sisala people.

“We have successfully moved from 11 to 16 standardized Ghanaian languages.”

She added that three more standardised orthographies are expected to be launched before the end of the year, in line with what she described as the President’s vision, as captured in the party’s manifesto, to preserve the country’s linguistic heritage.

As part of ongoing efforts to preserve Ghanaian languages, the Minister said the Ministry, through the BGL, marked the Ghana Languages Festival in July 2025, describing it as an annual event on the Ministry’s calendar aimed at educating Ghanaians on the importance of speaking their native languages and passing them on to the next generation, just as previous generations did.

She extended an invitation to the public to join the Ministry in future commemorations, noting that the day is marked annually on February 23rd in celebration of the diverse languages spoken across the country.

Hon. Gomashie also revealed that the BGL is undertaking an animation project focused on Ghanaian languages, explaining that the initiative is designed to introduce Ghanaian culture to children through cartoons, offering a modern, engaging medium through which young Ghanaians can connect with their native languages and cultural heritage from an early age.