Beyond the Return

2026-06-092026-09-14

In coverage

Verbatim sentences from the source article.

June 2026
9 JunJoy Online
… The success of initiatives such as the Year of Return and Beyond the Return significantly increased international attention on Ghana. …
Housing as shelter versus housing as investment: The Airbnb debate; regulation that protects affordability without strangling opportunity

Tourism & Environment

Bozoma Saint John wedding shows Ghana's untapped celebrity tourism potential

The News

A Ghanaian-American marketing executive's August 2026 wedding in Accra, attended by Real Housewives of Beverly Hills personalities and filmed for television, illustrates Ghana's under-exploited advantage: celebrities voluntarily associate themselves with Ghana through personal milestones, reaching millions of followers without the country having to pay for endorsements.

9 September 2026 · Joy Online →

Wednesday 9 September

Bozoma Saint John wedding shows Ghana's untapped celebrity tourism potential
A Ghanaian-American marketing executive's August 2026 wedding in Accra, attended by Real Housewives of Beverly Hills personalities and filmed for television, illustrates Ghana's under-exploited advantage: celebrities voluntarily associate themselves with Ghana through personal milestones, reaching millions of followers without the country having to pay for endorsements.
9 September 2026 · Joy Online →

Monday 7 September

NPP parliamentary aspirant calls for tourism minister's removal
James Korsah-Brown, an NPP parliamentary aspirant for Mfantseman, has called for Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts Abla Dzifa Gomashie to be replaced, citing subpar performance and saying the minister has not effectively leveraged existing programmes like Beyond the Return to boost the creative economy.
7 September 2026 · Joy Online →

Wednesday 12 August

Ghana Tourism Authority deputy CEO launches podcast to promote African tourism
Deputy CEO of the Ghana Tourism Authority Gilbert Abeiku Aggrey Santana has launched Tourism Destination Africa, a podcast designed to amplify African voices and reshape global perceptions of the continent's tourism industry through storytelling focused on tourism, travel and hospitality in Ghana and across Africa.
12 August 2026 · Joy Online →

Tuesday 28 July

Ghana honours Nkrumah, slavery victims at Emancipation Day
A wreath-laying ceremony was held at the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park in Accra on Thursday to honour Ghana's founding president and millions of Africans who endured slavery, as part of the 2026 Emancipation Day celebration. The event, held on the theme 'Reconnecting Roots, Celebrating Freedom, Experience Ghana,' brought together government officials, diplomats, traditional authorities, diaspora representatives, and students to reaffirm calls for African unity, reparatory justice, and stronger ties with the diaspora.
28 July 2026 · The Ghanaian Times →

Monday 20 July

D.O.O.R. Initiative projects $8bn diaspora investment in Ghana's first year
The Decade of Our Own Return (D.O.O.R.) Initiative is calling on Africans in the diaspora to invest, settle, and transfer skills to Ghana, projecting at least $8 billion in economic activity during the programme's first year. The 10-year initiative aims to reverse emigration trends by attracting diaspora members—including descendants of those displaced by the trans-Atlantic slave trade—to relocate, establish businesses, and contribute to national development.
20 July 2026 · Joy Online →

Friday 12 June

Content creator IShowSpeed claims Ghanaian ancestry, granted passport
YouTuber Darren Watkins Jr. (IShowSpeed), with over 50 million YouTube subscribers and 135 million followers across platforms, revealed Ghanaian ancestry in January 2026 and was granted a Ghanaian passport and given the Ghanaian name Barima Kofi Akuffo at a ceremony in Akropong.
12 June 2026 · Joy Online →
Diaspora homecoming movement driving property ownership in Accra
Ghana's Year of Return campaign in 2019, which marked 400 years since the first enslaved Africans were taken to Jamestown, Virginia, has evolved from heritage visits into sustained property ownership, reshaping who owns prime real estate in Accra. The follow-up "Beyond the Return" programme, launched in December 2019 and running to 2030, institutionalised the shift from temporary diaspora engagement to permanent settlement.
12 June 2026 · Joy Online →
Ghana attracts African diaspora through passport policy and real estate investment
Ghana has pursued a sustained decade-long strategy to welcome the global African diaspora, beginning with Right of Abode provisions and accelerated by the 2019 Year of Return campaign, which drew over a million visitors and more than 3 billion dollars into the local economy. The article suggests this policy framework is now driving African American investment in Ghanaian real estate as a practical step following diaspora citizenship.
12 June 2026 · Joy Online →

Thursday 11 June

Ghana's tourism receipts drop 10.14% despite visitor arrivals rising
International tourism receipts fell from $4.83 billion in 2024 to $4.34 billion in 2025, even as Ghana recorded 1,306,962 international tourist arrivals, a 1.4% increase over 2024. Domestic tourism and tourism enterprises expanded, with licensed tourism businesses rising from 6,702 to 7,109.
11 June 2026 · Joy Online →
Ghana records 11.35% rise in December 2025 international arrivals
International arrivals to Ghana in December 2025 rose to 141,186 from 126,791 in December 2024, an 11.35% increase. Overall, Ghana recorded 1,306,962 international tourist arrivals in 2025, representing a 1.4% increase over 2024.
11 June 2026 · Joy Online →

Tuesday 9 June

Airbnb's role in Accra housing affordability debate
Short-term rental platforms like Airbnb have transformed Accra's property market, particularly in areas like East Legon and Osu, creating economic benefits through tourism and property owner income but raising concerns about housing affordability and rental availability for residents amid rising rents and prices.
9 June 2026 · Joy Online →