The Tourism Ministry has hinted that the management of the Kintampo waterfall will be taken away from the district assembly and given to the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA).
Sector Minister Catherine Afeku disclosed that there will also be total rehabilitation and renovation of the waterfall as well as other safety measures put in place.
“The steps leading to the fall is actually very short, in terms of dimension so we are expanding that and putting in place a robust receptive tradition. That would give the oral tradition and the historical facts about the fall,” she revealed.
Highlighting some of the recommendations of the safety audit of the Kintampo waterfall site where some 19 students were killed last month after a rainstorm, she added that lifeguards would be trained and placed at the site.
According to her, the recommendations in the audit report will be implemented at various tourist sites across the country.
Members of Parliament (MP) Tuesday expressed concern about the neglect of various tourist sites which they said led to the Kintampo disaster.
It emerged that unqualified, untrained vigilante group affiliated to the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) forcibly took over the management of the waterfall prior to the disaster.
While the cause of Sunday’s disaster may be natural or accidental critics say the lack of professional training by the handlers of the waterfall at the time of the disaster may have contributed to the disaster.
Students, mostly from the Wenchi Methodist School were crushed to death when a tree tumbled on them after a severe rainfall Sunday afternoon.
The students had gone on an excursion to the Waterfall and were having fun when the disaster struck.
Apart from the 19 deaths, 11 other students sustained varying degrees of injuries and were hospitalised.
Speaking on the issue in Parliament, Mrs Afeku assured tourists that the various sites are safe for use.
“I am happy to announce that as at last week, a safety audit had been carried out and by a team of experts. The thorough results of the audit would be shared across all the tourist sites in the country.
“It is never too late and unfortunate that we have to wait for 19 people to perish before to do this. However, this should not stop us from appreciating the beautiful gifts God has given us,” she said.
According to her, the full report would be submitted to the ministry next week.
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