By George Folley & Edmund
Smith-Asante
 |
| A paraglider airborne |
Started 11 years ago, the
paragliding event has become an integral part of the Kwahu Easter festivities,
and has thus turned the Easter meet on the Kwahu Ridge into an international
gathering.
For three days (Friday to Sunday),
the festival attracts both Ghanaians and foreigners in an atmosphere of fun,
music and dance, with paragliders from the United States, France, Italy,
Belgium and Germany.
At the launch of this year’s event
recently, the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Mrs Elizabeth
Ofosu-Adjare, said the 2015 event recorded a total of 212 flights, out of
which, 40 passengers were Ghanaians, 55 Germans, 36 Americans and 12, Japanese.
Paragliding is a recreational and
competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders, which are lightweight,
free-flying (wind-directed), foot-launched glider aircraft with no rigid
primary structure.
Benefits
According to the Ghana Tourism
Authority (GTA), the festival exposes Ghanaians, as well as tourists to the
magic of free flight.
It also brings together the
international flying community by providing a well-organised opportunity for
tourists to Africa, in addition to experiencing more of the beauty of Ghana.
Thirdly, the festival strengthens
the local economy by creating opportunities for local business proprietors such
as taxi drivers, hotel owners and food vendors to earn more income.
Foreign pilots
In an interview with the Daily
Graphic at Mpraeso, the Zonal Coordinator of the GTA, Mr Evans
Antwi-Bosiako, said between 10 and 15 paragliding pilots from Peru, Japan,
Germany, Italy, France and Australia were expected at this year’s event.
He also said 50 people had already
registered to partake in the paragliding event but more people were expected to
register before it kicked off during Easter.
“We also have an insurance policy
for both the pilots and the passengers. Therefore, there is no cause for alarm.
In short we are ready for the festival, which we hope will be successful,” Mr
Antwi-Bosiako added.
He nonetheless, urged visitors to
the ridge to be security conscious despite the fact that the police would be
present.
Mr Antwi-Bosiako disclosed that to
step up the paragliding event and not make it only an event organised once a
year, the GTA was collaborating with various corporate organisations to have
other events throughout the year.
Advertised side attractions include
a live band, a cultural display, tug-of-peace and indoor games such as playing
cards, draughts and ‘oware’ competitions.
The Kwahu Tourism Initiative will
also organise tours to the Breast Mountains, Buokuro Rock and Stone City. There
would also be abseiling, which involves descending a rock face or other
near-vertical surface by using a double rope coiled round the body and fixed at
a higher point, as well as a food bazaar.
Appeal for improvement
In another development, a citizen of
Atibie-Kwahu, Mr Anthony Martey, has appealed to the government to upgrade
facilities at the paragliding venue at the Odwenanoma Mountains, including the
deteriorated road from the Atibie township to the paragliding venue.
He stated that as the event
attracted foreign and local tourists every year, the paragliding venue, which
offered a panoramic view of the Nkawkaw township, could be provided with
artificial grass, instead of the natural one which always had to be weeded in
preparation for the event.
“The view is nice and so we must not
wait till Easter before we come back to rehabilitate the place.
That practice
is not good at all. With this opportunity, we can tap seriously into this
tourist industry to create jobs and opportunities for the youth on the Kwahu
Ridge and surrounding areas,” he said.
This
story was first published by the Daily Graphic on March 25, 2016
No comments:
Post a Comment