A Journalist with the Graphic Communications Group Limited (GCGL), Haruna Yussif Wunpini, has been awarded Eastern Region Tourism Media Personality for the year 2024.
Haruna Wunpini, who has been with the GCGL and primarily been writing stories for the Daily Graphic, The company’s flagship newspaper as the Regional Reporter was also adjudged Best Reporter in the print category at the maiden Eastern Regional Tourism Media Awards held at Koforidua, the regional capital on Friday, September 13, 2024.
Parts of the citation reads, ”As the Eastern Regional Reporter, your quest and passion to write in-depth feature stories and news articles on the tourism potentials in the region is highly remarkable.”.
According to the citation, Wunpini’s dedication to tourism reporting took him to destinations to uncover unique attractions and untapped potentials such as the Rock with Human Features at ”Kodidi” in the Afram Plains North.
Another wonderful work of nature is the Canoe-Shaped tree at the Bunso Eco Park which publications in the Daily Graphic, The Mirror and Graphic Online significantly contributed in showcasing the region’s tourism attractions and potentials to the world.
The publications, the citation further highlighted some of the numerous challenges facing the tourism industry to the sector ministry for redress.
Another media organization, Channel One TV, was recognized as the Tourism Oriented Media for the year 2024, while 14 other tourism-related facilities in the region were also honored and given plagues and citations.
The awards scheme, the first of its kind, was instituted by the Eastern Regional Office of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) to honor outstanding individuals and hospitality facilities committed to excellence and dedication to tourism.
Haruna Wunpini, who was highly elated with the latest honor considering their relentless love for the tourism industry over the past years, said he never anticipated being given such an award.
“The path of success is always rough and very difficult, and those who are always ready to take challenges head-on and at the same time have a keen interest and are full of determination win over it”.
“I thank Almighty Allah for giving me the strength and energy to do what I have done.
“My editors and colleague journalists, including my wives and family members, supported me in winning the ultimate,” Yussif Wunpini stated.
To him, the public had recognised his good works and expressed appreciation to the GTA for honouring him.
The Eastern Regional Graphic reporter indicated that the award received would spur him to do more to enable him to win the national diadem.
Speaking at the event on the theme “Celebrating Innovation and Recognising Excellence In Ghana’s Tourism Sector”, the Head of the Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management at the University of Cape Coast, Professor Ishmael Mensah said the region had many tourist facilities such as Odweanoma Mountain, Akuapem Ridge, Aburi Botanical Gardens, the Volta Lake and the Akonnedi Shrine at Larteh and local cuisine such as “aboloo” and “Koko” which portrayed the region as a land of diversity.
He stated that the region which is endowed with highlands, wildlife, rich cultural heritage and warm-hearted people had been attracting tourists.
Professor Mensah, who is also the Director of the Confucius Institute, emphasized that given such tourist attractions, his outfit had recognized the awards as important to the development of the tourism industry.
He then congratulated all award winners, especially Haruna Wunpini of Daily Graphic for emerging the Eastern Region Tourism Media Personality for the year 2024.
Professor Mensah urged him to continue to write more feature stories on tourism related activities to enable him win the national award in the near future.
For his part, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the GTA, Akwasi Agyeman said the ceremony was the first to be organized in the 16 regions and that the rest would follow to showcase tourism potentials in such areas, adding that all the events would take place this September that had been designated tourism month.
He told the gathering that the events would be climaxed with the World Tourism Day on September 27, this month.
Agyeman therefore called on all the awardees to continue to work hard in their respective fields of work to project the region’s tourism potentials.
Furthermore, the Eastern Regional Director of GTA, Dinah Adu-Owusu said the region boast of vast tropical forests and landscapes, countless water bodies, rich cultural diversity and world class tourism hospitality facilities that merged to define the tourism hospitality landscape to host both domestic and international visitors.
She noted that it was important at the same time necessary to celebrate and honour the tourism entrepreneurs as well as the media practitioners and individuals who had througth innovation and their pursuit for excellence had transformed the available resources into memorable experiences in Eastern Region over the years.
“The future of tourism greatly depend on our ability to be continually innovative and intune with technology in order to meet the changing demands of todays problems and find ways to address them,” Adu-Owusu stated.
The representatives of the Eastern Regional Minister, Seth Kwame Acheampong and the Omanhene of the New Juaben Traditional Area, Daasebre Kwaku Boateng III also graced the occasion
By//Haruna Yussuf Wunpini.
Source// Obohnewsonline.com.
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