Comedy, especially stand-up comedy has almost died in the country because of lack of sponsorship. Two of Ghana’s celebrated comedians, Fritz Baffour and Tommy Annan Forson, have bemoaned the sad state of the comedy industry. The comedy industry could thrive and add some buzz to the entertainment industry in Ghana if it is given the right support, but this support is not forth coming. Speaking on Joy FM’s Weekend City Show, hosted by funny Rami Baitie, Fritz Baffour said comedy has become stagnant in the country, due to the lack of the necessary support in terms of sponsorship and public acceptance. He said since 1986/87 when he and Tommy introduced a new genre of comedy with a show known as “F & F” in the county, not much has happened to the industry. And this show he said, the two had to sponsor from their pockets. On the show with the two was Jazz Hammond an up and coming artiste. The irony though is that, while everybody loves to laugh, sponsorship for comedy is non-existent. During the discussion it came out that one other possible challenge the industry is facing is the social perception attached to comedy. The panel argued that the public’s perception that comedy is an expression of idiocy is the reason why comedians are not taken seriously. Indeed, making people laugh is not an act for the daft, one has to be smart to be able to do it. At a point in the history of the arts, there was the Key Soap Concert Party which was sponsored by Lever Brothers, but this has fizzled out. They cited examples of how the industry is growing in Nigeria because the public and business community have accepted it. Sadly, comedy shows in Ghana have been taken over by Nigerian comedians, because each time there is a comedy show in the country, the majority of the artistes are Nigerians. When KSM started his shows, he had to struggle for sponsorship in small bits, the panel revealed, but even now, his shows have gone off. Currently in Ghana, the only place where comedy is being given any serious attention is at the University of Ghana, Legon, and that is sustained by the ingenuity of individual students who have the passion for comedy. The arts industry in general in Ghana, is suffering from the lack of the appropriate attention. Time and again, artistes have made countless appeals to government and the business community to assist the arts industry to stand on its feet and grow, because it is an industry with a potential to make lots of money for the country as well as inform people and change lives for the best, but these cries have gone unheeded. This cry has now reached the international community. When on June 20, 2008, the World Bank launched its Global Monitoring Report 2008, at the British Council, an actoress, Akofa Edjeani asked that the World Bank and international bodies consider the adoption of the theatre arts to communicate the details of the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) to the public, because it appears the message about the MDGs is not getting down well and very few people know about it. Businesses, and individuals should consider the arts and especially comedy and invest in the area because it can be rewarding in so many ways. Comedy makes people laugh, and can you imagine making more money by making people laugh? By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi