The Chief Executive of the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA), Akwasi Agyeman, has explained how the proposed Travel Protocol Services by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) will benefit Ghanaian creatives.

Reacting to a question on the policy idea during Joy FM's Manifesto Debate on Creative Economy, Akwasi Agyeman noted that although the plan is not new, they intend to structure it well to best fit its purpose.

"This is not something that is not being done. There are protocol services that are offered. For example, if you are an artiste and you travel to London, you have the opportunity to call on the embassy in London to offer you services. So it is not necessarily visas. When you get there, the embassies will be aligned with the vision of Travel Protocol Services. So when we talk about travel protocol services it is not just visas. We are talking about local transportation, making sure that you can meet people in authority," he noted.

Shedding more light the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mark Okraku-Mantey said "generally, diplomatic passports and service passports are given to people that government have sent to do particular projects. When you have diplomatic passport, there is a degree to which you can explain that. There is something called full powers; the government has given you full powers to represent the country elsewhere so we are going to use international relationships."

The Travel Protocol Service policy is part of the New Patriotic Party's 2024 manifesto promises for the creative industry.

In their manifesto which was launched on August 18, 2024 at the Ghana Secondary Technical School in Takoradi, the NPP highlights the need to give people in the Cultural and Creative industries travel protocol service.

They have also promised to “use tax incentives, including a flat tax, to incentivise private sector investments in sports, tourism, and creative arts facilities” and to “implement an e-visa policy for all international visitors to Ghana, to make visa acquisition fast and convenient for visitors.”

Apart from the NPP intends to “roll out a visa-free policy for all nationals of African and Caribbean countries visiting Ghana” and “establish, in partnership with the private sector, a streaming and digital management platform for Ghanaian content developers in the creative arts.”