The Ministry of Tourism and Diasporan Relations would in the middle of this year commence a comprehensive training programme for artisans in the country. The programme is meant to upgrade the skills and build the capacity of artisans to ensure that they adopted the best of practices in their works. Mr. Stephen Asamoah-Boateng, the sector Minister disclosed this in a speech read on his behalf at the inauguration of a Hundred Thousand Ghana Cedi Tourist Centre at Bonwire in the Ejisu-Juaben District in Ashanti region at the weekend. The Centre was funded by the Ministry in collaboration with the Ejisu-Juaben District Assembly and would be managed by Makham Eglington Company. It is, among others designed to be stocked with all the necessary information, historical and traditional background of the kente cloth with the view to preserving the Kente cultural heritage and also promote the kente industry for the patronage of both domestic and international tourists. The Minister announced that the training programme would be sponsored by the Ministry in collaboration with Aid to Artisans Ghana (ATAG), a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO). Mr Asamoah-Boateng said, among the topics to be treated during the year-long programme include marketing, packaging, branding and finishing and added that the project was necessitated by persistent complaints by tourists about the shoddy work of most artisans, especially craftsmen and artists. He stated that his Ministry attached immense importance to the development of tourist attraction sites as a way of boosting tourism in the country and therefore appealed to NGOS and stakeholders to support the ministry in its efforts to upgrade the infrastructure and requisite social amenities in those sites. This, according to the Minister, would help stimulate private sector investments in hotels, lodges, restaurants, souvenir shops, recreational and entertainment centres. Mr. Yaw Ahenkora-Afrifa, Ejisu-Juaben District Chief Executive (DCE), noted that the assembly was committed to refurbishing the Yaa Asantewaa Museum at Ejisu, which was gutted by fire some time ago. The refurbishment he said is to bring facilities at the museum to standard to help generate the needed patronage for the site. Source: GNA