Tour Guiding and Community Homestay Level 3

Who it is for. People who have finished Tour Guiding and Community Homestay Level 2, or can show the same skills, and who want to lead a guiding team, manage a community tourism project, run a homestay, or start a tour business. Ghana's TVET framework places National Proficiency II below National Certificate I. This module is written at an advanced level, comparable to National Certificate I; that comparison is the author's judgement, not a CTVET ruling.

Bridge from Level 2: what you already know

Level 2 taught you the skills of one tour. Level 3 joins them into a product line, a legal business and a fair partnership with the people whose home your guests visit.

How the module works

Each unit has learning outcomes, performance criteria, the range and the evidence your assessor needs. You are judged Competent or Not Yet Competent. About 60% of the time is practical. Every unit ends with a three-question Check yourself. Money examples are examples unless a source is named: always replace them with your own real prices.

Competency standard

Range. A half-day walk, a village and fort day, or a homestay evening for 2 to 12 guests near Akwidaa, Dixcove, Busua, Princess Town, Beyin or Nzulezu. Evidence. Itinerary; supplier agreement; risk assessment; product sheet; oral questions.

What a tour product is

A tour product is a tour you can describe in one page and deliver again and again. It answers: who is it for, how long, what do guests see, what is included, how many people, how much, and what could go wrong. A good product has a name, a start point, a route, a time plan, a price, a group-size limit and a risk assessment.

Step by step: build an itinerary

Sample time plan (example, not a real tour).

The route, stops and facts are only a model. Your route will differ.

Partners and suppliers

Almost every tour uses other people: a canoe or boat owner, a cook, a drummer, a craft maker, a driver, a fort custodian, a homestay family. They are suppliers (you pay them) or partners (you share a plan or income). Suppliers decide whether your product is safe. Treat them like colleagues and write the deal down.

Drop or retrain any supplier who scores 2 or less on safe, whatever their price.

Seasons and conditions

Tourist numbers rise and fall. No verified Ghana tourist-season figures for Akwidaa were found, so build your own record: every tour you run, write the month, the group size and the weather. After a year you will see your own busy and slow months. Plan three things for slow months: a lower-cost product (a two-hour walk), a stay-based product (cooking class, batik, drumming), and a plan for paying fixed costs from savings (Unit 6).

Conditions also change within a day: tide, wave size, heat, rain and darkness. For a beach stop, rip currents pull away from the shore; teach guests not to swim against them, and to float and call for help. A travel guide reports rip currents at Busua with no permanent lifeguard (summary only). Make "no swimming" a written part of every beach product unless a trained lifeguard is present.

The tour risk assessment

A risk assessment is a written list of what could harm someone, how likely and how bad, and what you will do about it. Level 3 means you write it for the whole product, you share it with suppliers, and you review it after any incident.

Rate: score = likelihood × harm. 15 or more: act now, change or cancel; 8 to 14: control it and check each tour; under 8: watch. These cut-offs are course method, not a legal rule.

Emergency plan on one card. Write on the product sheet: the national emergency number 112 for police, fire and ambulance; the nearest clinic name and phone (not found for Akwidaa, so you must ask and write it); your own supervisor's phone; the meeting place. Heat illness is serious: hot red dry skin and confusion mean move to shade, cool with wet cloths, give sips of cool water and call 112 if the person vomits, refuses water or loses consciousness (summary only). A guide is not a doctor; take a hands-on first aid course.

Write the product sheet

Costing and pricing a product

Costs have two kinds. Fixed per tour costs do not change with group size (guide, transport, first aid kit share, mobile money fees). Variable per person costs rise with each guest (entry, water, community fund). Price must cover both and leave a profit.

Worked example (all figures are examples). Half-day fort and fishing village walk for 6 guests.

• Cost for 6 guests = 470 + 65 × 6 = GH¢860.
• To earn a 25% margin on price (profit ÷ price), price = cost ÷ (1 − 0.25) = 860 ÷ 0.75 = GH¢1,146.67, which is GH¢191.11 per person. Round up to GH¢195 per person: total GH¢1,170, profit GH¢310, margin 26.5%, mark-up 36.0%.
• Break-even group size = fixed cost ÷ (price − variable cost per person) = 470 ÷ (195 − 65) = 470 ÷ 130 = 3.6, so you need 4 guests to avoid a loss.

Set a minimum group (here 4) or a minimum charge, and say so on the product sheet. See Unit 6 for margin versus mark-up.

Check yourself

1. Why add time to every walking leg when you plan an itinerary?
2. What is the difference between a fixed cost per tour and a variable cost per person?
3. What is the course rule for every boat or canoe trip?

Competency standard

Range. A small tour operator and a home lodge or homestay in the Western Region. Evidence. Regulator map; licence file checklist; site fee calculation; compliance register.

The main law and the main regulator

The Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) is mandated under the Tourism Act 2011 (Act 817) to register and licence tourism enterprises. GTA's own list includes hotels, guest houses, hostels, home lodges, restaurants, travel agencies, tour companies and car rentals. Operating without a licence contravenes section 25(2) of Act 817, and the GTA said such establishments would be closed and sanctioned. In October 2023 the GTA Western Regional Directorate ran a week-long closure exercise with police support and said about 40 facilities in the region had not registered.

Who licenses what

GTA process on its website: register; inspection and assessment (a team inspects and helps you get permits); licensing (operational licence). That page lists no documents or fees. A report says registration may also involve the Registrar General's Department, Town and Country Planning, the Ghana National Fire Service, the Police, the EPA and the district assembly (summary only).

What was not found (say this honestly)

The licence for an accommodation: what the regulation asks

L.I. 2239 sets out who can qualify. To qualify you must be a business entity registered in Ghana, have your premises registered by the GTA, have a manager registered and licensed by the GTA, hold an insurance policy covering operations, and have no serious conviction for fraud or dishonesty. You apply in writing on the prescribed form with your business registration documents, your TIN registration certificate, your manager's certificate of registration and the fee. If refused, you may appeal to the Tourism Appeal Panel, which decides within 30 days. The regulation expects annual fire training and medical checks for staff. The term of the licence was not stated in that regulation; renewal is a matter to confirm with the GTA.

The tourism levy

A 1% Tourism Levy is enforced; in 2023 some Western Region facilities were closed partly for not paying it. Older reports describe it as 1% on goods and services at tourism enterprises, collected by the GTA (summary only). Whether the rate or base changed after 2025 was not verified. Do not copy 1% as a fact. Ask the GTA: What is the rate? On what base (room only or all sales)? How often? Where is it paid? The examples in Unit 6 use 1% as an example only.

Site fees you must work into your prices

The Ghana Museums and Monuments Board (GMMB) publishes a fee table for forts and regional museums. It labels the table "prior to the recent revision" and gives no date, so treat it as the last published; confirm by phone.

The page does not say which fort is in which group, and it lists a separate higher group for the National Museum and the castles. Fort Apollonia's own GMMB page still shows 2013 fees (Ghanaian adult GH¢5, foreign adult US$10), which are history only. GMMB contact for the Central and Western Regions: Cape Coast Castle, Tel +233-3321 32529. Fort Metal Cross hours per GMMB are 9:00 to 16:30; fees were not on that page; ask. The Nzulezu canoe fee, Ankasa gate fees and the Cape Three Points lighthouse fee were not verified: phone before you quote.

Fire safety and other site rules

If you run a guest house or a premises that people visit, the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) runs the AFCAS online system for fire certificate applications, payment and digital certificates. Published fees were GH¢250 residential, GH¢500 non-residential and GH¢1,000 commercial, plus processing fees; check today's fees and which class fits your home lodge. Extinguishers must be serviced only by licensed contractors; do not refill or tag them yourself.

For safety on the water see Unit 1: life jackets for every person. The Ghana Maritime Authority has said a legal instrument making life jackets compulsory on inland water was being processed in August 2026 (summary only). Whatever the law says on the day, your rule is no jacket, no boat.

Data and photos. Guest names, phone numbers and passport copies are personal data. The Data Protection Act 2012 (Act 843) asks those who process it to register with the Data Protection Commission and sets eight principles (summary only). Whether a small tour business must register was not verified; ask the Commission.

Step by step: assemble your licence file

Check yourself

1. Which Act makes the Ghana Tourism Authority responsible for licensing tourism enterprises?
2. Why must you phone before quoting a fort fee from the published table?
3. What does the course say you should do if someone asks for "speed" money to get a licence?

Competency standard

Range. A community near Akwidaa, Princess Town, Dixcove, Beyin or Nzulezu that wants to welcome guests. Evidence. Draft constitution or MoU; benefit-sharing sheet; code of conduct; child protection policy; oral questions.

What community tourism is

Community tourism means guests visit a place and the people who live there plan the visits, decide the rules and share the income. It is not a tour company walking guests past houses. A homestay is a form of it: guests stay in a family home and eat and learn with the family.

Ghana has no single, official Ghana-specific homestay standard that was found. L.I. 2239 names home stays as an accommodation category, and the definition and minimum standards were not verified. As a foreign model checklist, the ASEAN Homestay Standard (2016) has nine criteria: host, accommodation, activities, management, location, hygiene and cleanliness, safety and security, marketing, and sustainability principles (summary only). Use it to organise your own checklist, not as a Ghana rule.

CREMA and resource rules

A Community Resource Management Area (CREMA) is a system set up from the year 2000 by the Wildlife Division to hand management and benefits of off-reserve natural resources to communities; communities need bye-laws (summary only). The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources began consultation on a Legislative Instrument to operationalise CREMAs under the Wildlife Resources Management Act 2023 (Act 1115); the L.I. status was not verified, and a 2025 study found weak governance capacity (summary only). No tourism-specific CREMA guideline was found. If your community already has a CREMA, join its meetings; if it does not, ask the Wildlife Division how to start one before you plan wildlife tours.

Ghana's first Marine Protected Area at Cape Three Points was expected to be designated in 2026, with 21 communities involved; whether it was inaugurated was not verified, so check before you teach it (summary only).

Step by step: set up fair governance

Site management and boards

L.I. 2393 requires tourist sites to register, have a governing board overseeing day-to-day safety, meet standards and grading, and sometimes limit visitor numbers; the GTA signed MoUs with 16 sites by October 2022. If a community site grows, ask the GTA whether it must register and what board is needed. A good site board keeps: a visitor count, a safety checklist, a cleaning rota, a complaints book and a monthly accounts report.

Benefit sharing: a fair, written rule

Benefit sharing means deciding in advance how each cedi of income is split. A written rule stops quarrels and builds trust.

Example rule (not a Ghana standard; the community decides). Every GH¢100 earned by a tour is split like this:

On a GH¢1,170 tour that is: 702.00, 175.50, 117.00, 117.00 and 58.50, which add up to 1,170.00. Eight such tours in a month give a community fund of 8 × 175.50 = GH¢1,404.

Pay community partners the same day (course method), keep a receipt and put the amount in the cash book. If a guest gives a tip, the guide keeps it unless the guest says otherwise; say so on the product sheet.

Ethics: a written code

Write a code of conduct on one page. Teach every guide, host and guest to follow it.

Child protection policy

Children are most at risk when strangers visit. Write a short policy and train everyone who works with guests.

Heritage and sensitive history

Forts are places of suffering. Guests may cry or go quiet. Do not joke, rush or sell crafts inside the dungeon area. Warn guests before you take them into spaces that people from African-descent families may find sacred. Say which facts are documented (building dates, owners, cannons) and which are estimates or oral accounts. GMMB's wording for Fort Metal Cross, Dixcove, "used as a slave prison", is safe to repeat. Tell the local story too: African traders, chiefs and communities were involved, and communities also resisted; for example, the Infuma people besieged Dixcove and John Canoe resisted the sale of the fort at Princess Town. Use "enslaved people", not "slaves", in your own words (course advice). UNESCO's Slave Route project aims to break the silence on the slave trade and help us understand its causes and consequences (summary only). One popular estimate of 300,000 people passing through Princess Town is not verified; say "estimates vary" or leave it out.

Sources differ on several dates and facts for forts at Dixcove, Princess Town and Beyin. Teach the GMMB version, say "sources differ" where they do, and ask GMMB.

Include everyone

Guiding on foot and canoe is physically demanding. Interpretation, a crafts desk, cooking, bookings and homestay hosting suit more people, and a deaf guide can lead visual tours; access to information in sign language matters for deaf visitors, and tactile models, braille and audio guides help blind visitors (summary only). Deaf-blind guiding technique was not found. Ghana's Persons with Disability Act 2006 (Act 715) requires accessible public places and bans job discrimination. Ask guests what they need before they arrive.

Check yourself

1. Why should a benefit-sharing rule be written and read aloud at a community meeting?
2. Give two things the course says you must never do with children as a guide or host.
3. What is the safe way to describe the Dixcove fort's use in the slave trade, according to GMMB?

Competency standard

Range. A tour and homestay business selling to walk-in guests, hotels and tour operators. Evidence. Online listing; WhatsApp booking record; review replies; partner rate sheet; pricing exercise.

Know who buys

Local demand and numbers were not found in any verified source. Keep your own enquiry log (see Unit 6) and let it tell you which buyer is best.

Google Business Profile: step by step

A Google Business Profile is free to add or claim. For tours with no fixed address you can use a service-area or hybrid listing. Verification is often by postcard and takes time, so start early.

Review sites

TripAdvisor owner listings are free; first check whether the business already has a listing, claim it with your name, role and contact, and verify by a phone number or a credit card that is not charged; use the identical name, address and phone on both platforms (summary only). Ask the GTA about a place in its Directory of Licensed Enterprises.

Reviews: ask, answer, never fake

WhatsApp Business: from enquiry to booking

WhatsApp Business is a free app for business accounts that lets you set a business profile, a catalogue, quick replies and labels (summary only).

Confirmation template (course-written; adapt): "Hello (name). This is (your name) from (business). Your (tour name) is confirmed for (date) at (time). Meet at (place, with map link). Group of (number). Price GH¢(amount); deposit GH¢(amount) received, balance GH¢(amount) on the day. Please bring: hat, water, closed shoes, sun cream. Emergency: 112. For any change phone (number). Akwaaba!"

Partnering with hotels, lodges and tour operators

A hotel desk will sell your tour if it is safe, reliable, easy and pays a commission (a share of the price kept by the seller). A common commission rate was not verified; agree it in writing, and check what basis the hotel will pay on.

Worked example (all figures are examples). The Unit 1 tour costs GH¢860 for 6 guests and sells direct at GH¢195 each, total GH¢1,170, profit GH¢310.

• A hotel sells it at the same GH¢1,170 and keeps 15% commission: 1,170 × 0.15 = GH¢175.50. You receive GH¢994.50. Profit = 994.50 − 860 = GH¢134.50 (11.5% of the guest price). Your profit has fallen by more than half.
• To keep a GH¢310 profit after a 15% commission, the guest price must be (860 + 310) ÷ 0.85 = GH¢1,376.47, or GH¢229.41 each. Round up to GH¢230 each. Check: 230 × 6 = 1,380; commission 207; you receive 1,173; profit 313.

Lesson: never give a commission out of a price that has no room for it. Build the commission into a separate hotel price list.

For tour operators, quote a net rate per person or per group, valid for a stated season, with an invoice, payment terms (deposit and balance), and a clear list of what is and is not included. Ask every operator for its GTA licence number, and show yours.

Pricing in foreign currency

Foreign guests and operators often ask for prices in US dollars or euros. The cedi rate moves, so a price fixed in dollars can leave you short on the day you pay your guides in cedis. Use these rules (course method):

Worked example (the exchange rate is an example, not the real rate). Your group price for 6 guests is GH¢1,170 and cost is GH¢860. At an example rate of GH¢11 per US$1, GH¢195 is US$17.73. Suppose you quote a group price of US$108 (US$18 each).

The lowest rate at which US$108 covers the GH¢860 cost is 860 ÷ 108 = 7.96. If the cedi gets stronger and the rate falls near that level, you must raise the dollar price.

Deposits, cancellations and trust

A clear policy protects both sides. Example (course method; change it for your business): a deposit of 30% to confirm a group booking; full refund if the guest cancels at least 3 days before; deposit kept if they cancel later; full refund if you cancel or if unsafe weather stops the tour. Put it in the quote and in the confirmation message. Never promise what you cannot give: say "weather permitting".

Content that sells honestly

Show real photos, real guides, real prices, the licence number and the safety rules. Use plain words and short sentences. Tell the story of the place and name the people who benefit. Write an accessibility line: "Wheelchair users: the walk to the fort has steps; the fishing landing is flat. Please tell us your needs." Add alternative text to photos and write phone numbers as text, not only in images.

Check yourself

1. Why should your name, address and phone be identical on Google and on a review site?
2. If a hotel keeps 15% commission on the full price, what happens to your profit?
3. Why do you quote a base price in cedis and show dollars only as a guide?

Competency standard

Range. A one- to five-person tour and homestay business near Akwidaa, Busua, Dixcove or Princess Town. Evidence. Registration checklist; start-up budget; payroll sample; one-page business plan; pitch.

What business are you starting?

Choose a legal form

Annual returns cost GH¢175 a year, with late fees of GH¢1,000 (1 to 4 years) or GH¢2,000 (5 years or more). For a guide or a small homestay, a sole proprietor business name is the easiest start. If you take boats, groups and hotel contracts, think about a company, because unlimited liability is a serious risk when guests are on the water. For a community project where no member should take profit, a company limited by guarantee fits.

Registration, step by step

Income tax. Residents with business income only and no VAT registration may use the Modified Taxation Scheme: fixed instalments up to GH¢20,000 turnover, and 3% of turnover from GH¢20,001 to GH¢750,000; professionals, partners and owners of several businesses are excluded. Whether a tour guide or tour operator counts as a "professional" was not verified; ask GRA. Companies pay 25% standard, with other rates by sector.

VAT. The VAT Act 2025 (Act 1151) took effect on 1 January 2026; VAT 15% plus NHIL 2.5% plus GETFund 2.5% is a 20% effective rate. The registration threshold for goods rose to GH¢750,000, but for services there is no turnover threshold: a taxable person making taxable supplies of services registers within 30 days of starting. Whether tours, guiding and homestay rooms are taxable, exempt or zero-rated, especially for foreign guests, was not verified. This is the biggest open question for your business; ask GRA Takoradi in writing before your first booking. A VAT-registered business cannot use the Modified Taxation Scheme.

Premises and location

A tour business can start with a phone, a notebook, a bag of first aid and life jackets, and an agreement with a canoe owner. A homestay can start in one spare room.

Equipment and start-up budget

Essential gear for tours: life jackets for every guest and guide; first aid kits; a whistle; a loud-hailer or small speaker; ponchos; torches; a clipboard, receipt book and pens; printed maps; sun hats; a cool box for water. For a homestay: beds and mattresses, nets, bedding, a safe water source and filter, a fire extinguisher serviced by a licensed contractor, locks, and a simple guest book.

Price evidence: the Ghana Maritime Authority's June 2026 campaign said subsidised life jackets cost GH¢250 each (summary only). Online first-aid kits were listed on Jiji at about GH¢90 to 150 on 7 October 2026, Western Region not checked (summary only). Other prices below are examples; replace them with real quotes.

Example start-up budget (invented numbers for practice, except where a source is named):

Financing

Own savings; a susu or village savings and loan association (VSLA); microfinance; bank loans; the Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA), which offers SME GO, Business-in-a-Box, SME High Growth and Kaizen, with Business Advisory Centres in Takoradi, Shama, Effia-Kwesimintsim, Mpohor and Ahanta West. The 2026 Budget set aside GH¢170 million for a National Apprenticeship Programme and GH¢160 million for Adwumawura. The Assemblies' disability fund may help persons with disabilities; the 2026 rate was not re-verified, so ask your Assembly. Start free and cheap; borrow only when bookings are clear. A tour business can also start by renting gear and paying suppliers on the day rather than buying everything.

Hire and protect

Guides as employees or freelancers. An employee works under your control with a contract, leave and SSNIT. A casual or freelance guide is paid per tour. Do not call someone casual to avoid your duties.

The Labour Act requires a written contract for work of six months or more (s.12), a written statement of terms within two months (s.13), 15 working days of paid leave (s.20) and 12 weeks of maternity leave (s.57); casual workers get the full minimum for each day worked (s.74). The minimum wage is GH¢21.77 a day in 2026. SSNIT: employee 5.5% and employer 13% of basic salary; the employer pays within 14 days after month-end. PAYE is due by the 15th of the next month; casual workers pay 5%.

Worked example: a monthly assistant on GH¢800 basic (example, 2026 PAYE bands).

SSNIT is paid by the 14th and PAYE by the 15th of the next month. The 2026 PAYE bands in GRA PAYE take effect from 1 September 2026.

Apprentices. Teach safety first, supervise, and give a written agreement with a start date, tasks, allowance and what they will learn. Homestay hosts: check that every adult in the household agrees, and keep a list of who sleeps in the house.

Insurance. Use only insurers licensed by the National Insurance Commission; check at nic.gov.gh. The L.I. 2239 route asks an accommodation licence applicant to hold an insurance policy covering operations. Which covers are compulsory for a small tour operator was not verified, and no Ghana premium was found. Ask for quotes for public liability (harm to guests), personal accident and property cover, and ask whether boat trips are covered or excluded.

Accessibility and inclusion

The Persons with Disability Act 2006 (Act 715) bans job discrimination and requires accessible places. Many tourism tasks suit people with different abilities:

Ask each worker or guest what they need; never assume. Phone sites ahead about steps and toilets. Use the Sign Language and Assistive Technology courses at the hub for deaf-guide training.

One-page plan and pitch

Fit on one page: customers; products and prices; location; start-up cost and finance; monthly costs and break-even; licences you need and what is not yet found; community partners and benefit rule; how you will advertise; safety, child protection and ethics rules.

Check yourself

1. What is the cost of registering a sole-proprietor business name at the ORC in 2026?
2. Why is unlimited liability a serious risk for a tour business that uses boats?
3. For services, what is the VAT registration threshold in 2026?

Competency standard

Range. A small tour and homestay business. Evidence. Booking register; cash book; month-end pack; costing sheet; cash-flow forecast.

The core rule

Assets = Liabilities + Equity. In double entry every transaction has a debit and a credit of equal amount: debits increase assets and expenses; credits increase liabilities, capital and income; a trial balance checks that total debits equal total credits but cannot catch every error. Keep owner money and business money apart: pay yourself a fixed drawing, not "whatever is in the pocket".

The records every tour business keeps

Sample booking register (example):

Deposits: not income yet

When a guest pays a deposit for a tour in December, the money is in your account in November but it is not November income. You still owe the tour. It is a liability (customer deposits) until you deliver. Never spend deposits on personal needs; if you do, you will be unable to pay for the tour you promised. When the tour is delivered, move the deposit into income.

Commissions and withholding

If a hotel sells your tour and keeps a commission, record the full tour sale as income and the commission as a cost (or record only the net you receive; choose one method and keep to it). A debtor is owed to you: record the net amount the hotel will pay and the date it is due. For tax, withholding rates in Ghana include 7.5% on services (an individual or entity paid over GH¢2,000 a year), 5% on works, 3% on goods and 10% on commission to individual sales and canvassing agents; GRA does not say whether a hotel's commission is a "service", so ask the payer for the basis and ask for a withholding tax certificate for any tax deducted from your fees.

A cash book page (example)

Totals: receipts 9,130 (including the opening 2,000), payments 3,715, closing balance 5,415 (9,130 − 3,715).

A simple double-entry check (example)

Total debits = 500 + 200 + 1,170 + (994.50 + 175.50) + 3,000 + 1,000 = 7,040. Total credits = 500 + 200 + 1,170 + 1,170 + 3,000 + 1,000 = 7,040. They agree.

Costing, margin, mark-up and break-even

• Mark-up is profit ÷ cost. Margin is profit ÷ selling price. A tour costing GH¢860 sold at GH¢1,170: profit 310; mark-up 36.0%; margin 26.5%.
• Break-even = fixed costs ÷ profit per unit (or per tour). Break-even for the whole business: monthly fixed costs ÷ profit per tour.
• Depreciation (straight line) = (cost − salvage) ÷ useful life. Example: 12 life jackets cost GH¢3,000 (12 × 250, price from Source: Search-GMA), salvage 0, life 3 years: GH¢1,000 a year, GH¢83.33 a month. A speaker at GH¢1,200, salvage GH¢200, life 4 years: GH¢250 a year, GH¢20.83 a month. Total GH¢104.17 a month.

Break-even for the business (example). Monthly cash costs of GH¢1,604 (staff GH¢904, phone GH¢150, rent GH¢300, marketing GH¢100, insurance share GH¢150) plus depreciation GH¢104.17 = GH¢1,708.17. At a profit of GH¢310 per tour (no commissions), break-even is 1,708.17 ÷ 310 = 5.51, so 6 tours a month before the homestay is counted.

Month-end routine

1. Total the cash book and agree the closing balance with cash in hand.
2. Reconcile MoMo and bank statements to the cash book; list differences (usually fees not yet recorded).
3. Update the debtors and creditors list and the deposit register.
4. Do a trial-style check: total debits equal total credits.
5. Write the income statement: income minus costs equals profit.
6. Write a simple balance sheet: what you own and owe.
7. Update the next three months of the cash-flow forecast.
8. Pay the SSNIT and PAYE dates on time and file the records.

Example month (invented numbers)

An example November for a small tour and homestay business.

If the owner draws GH¢1,000, GH¢1,045.33 stays in the business. Under the Modified Taxation Scheme, if it applied, 3% of turnover would be 3% × 12,000 = GH¢360 (example only; whether the business qualifies and whether VAT applies must be confirmed with GRA).

Example balance sheet at 30 November (whole cedis, example).

Check: liabilities 1,500 + 500 + 161 = 2,161; equity 8,000 + 1,803 + 2,045 − 1,000 = 10,848; 2,161 + 10,848 = 13,009. Assets 6,450 + 2,984 + 3,575 = 13,009. Assets = liabilities + equity.

Seasons and cash flow

Profit is not cash. Deposits come in before tours; hotels pay late; slow months leave fixed costs to pay. A cash-flow forecast lists each month: opening cash, expected receipts, expected payments, closing cash. Hold a lean-season reserve of about three months of fixed costs; with fixed cash costs of GH¢1,604 a month (staff, phone, rent, marketing and insurance share) that is 3 × 1,604 = GH¢4,812 (example). The 12-month forecast with seasons is in Unit 7.

MoMo and bank reconciliation

Your mobile money statement and your cash book must match. Example: the cash book says the MoMo balance is GH¢2,310. The statement says GH¢2,290. The difference is GH¢20: it is the transaction fees not yet written in the book. Record GH¢20 as a bank and MoMo charge and the two now agree. If they do not agree, find the difference: a missed payment, a number typed wrongly, or a deposit not entered. Never ignore a gap.

Tax records and the law

Keep records in Ghana for at least six years from the end of the year of assessment or VAT period. Filing calendar: SSNIT by the 14th; PAYE and withholding tax by the 15th; VAT by the last working day of the following month; provisional tax quarterly; annual return within four months of year-end; STMA permit by 31 March. Tourism levy dates: not found.

The VAT-on-services question. A VAT-registered supplier charges VAT and cannot use the Modified Taxation Scheme. For services there is no turnover threshold. At an effective rate of 20%, VAT on a GH¢1,170 tour would be GH¢234, so a guest price of GH¢1,404 including tax, if the tour is taxable. Whether tours, guiding and rooms are taxable, exempt or zero-rated, and how the Tourism Levy interacts with VAT, was not verified. Do not guess: write a short letter to GRA Takoradi, keep the answer, and price accordingly. Free tools: Excel or Google Sheets, Zoho Books free plan and Wave (summary only). From 1 January 2027 the 2025 IFRS for SMEs applies to companies using it.

Check yourself

1. Is a deposit for a tour next month income this month? Why?
2. If total assets are GH¢13,009 and liabilities are GH¢2,161, what is equity?
3. What must you ask GRA about services, before your first booking?

Competency standard

Range. A tour and homestay business plan. Evidence. One-page plan; forecast; panel score sheet; oral questions.

Quality systems

A quality system makes sure the hundredth tour is as good and as safe as the first.

The GTA's 2018 guide training covered these topics, which make a good yearly refresher plan: tourism in focus, tour guiding today, tourism enterprises, the tour guide at work, role, function and ethics, the tourism product, tools of the tour guide, communications, presentation and interpretation, and industry safety and security. Formal guiding courses are offered at some technical universities and professional institutions; details were not verified (summary only).

Customer care and complaints

Give every guest a clear promise and keep it. Greet by name, start on time, tell the truth about what you will see, and finish with thanks. Handle complaints in four steps: listen without interrupting; say sorry for what happened; fix it or offer a fair solution; record it and change something. Reply to written complaints within two days (good practice). Keep a complaints book at the homestay.

Pricing strategy

Price from cost and value, not from fear (Unit 1). Options:

Raise prices when you are always fully booked. Tell the community and partners before you do.

Scaling without losing safety

The 2026 Budget included programmes for apprenticeship, Adwumawura and the 24-hour economy. Ask the GEA Business Advisory Centre what is open now.

Contracts, tenders and partnerships

Put every job in writing. A good agreement says: who, what, where, when, price and payment dates, who supplies what, safety duties, cancellation, how complaints are handled, how long it lasts, and how either side can end it.

Model community MoU clauses (course method; have a lawyer or the Assembly review a real one):

1. The parties and the date.
2. What the business may do in the community: tours, stays, meals, performances.
3. What guests must follow: the community code and child protection policy.
4. The benefit-sharing rule (Unit 3), payment dates and receipts.
5. Group-size and visiting-time limits, and no-visit days (for example, the lake day at Nzulezu if the community says so).
6. Training and hiring: local people first for guide and host roles where suitable.
7. Safety: life jackets, first aid, emergency numbers.
8. Record-keeping and a quarterly report meeting.
9. Disputes: first the committee, then the chief and elders, then the Assembly.
10. Review and end of the agreement.

Tenders and larger buyers. Schools, churches, NGOs, hotels and larger companies may ask for a quote or a tender. They may ask for your business registration, TIN, GTA licence, insurance, references, a safety plan and a price. Tax clearance and the exact public procurement route for tourism services were not verified; ask the buyer and the Assembly. Withholding tax may be deducted from your fees: services 7.5% and works 5%; ask the client for the certificate.

Records for a loan

Lenders ask for registration, TIN, GTA licence, six to twelve months of cash book and MoMo statements, a booking register, and a plan with a forecast. Tidy books are your best collateral (course method).

Succession and ethics

Write your procedures down so the business runs without you, and name who takes over if you are ill. Never run a tour without checking life jackets, never take a licence you do not have, never sell protected-species products, never take guests to orphanages as an attraction, never photograph children without consent, and never promise what you have not checked.

Capstone: a plan and a 12-month cash-flow forecast

Your capstone is a one-page business plan and a 12-month cash-flow forecast presented to a panel. The example below shows how seasons change your cash. All numbers are examples; use your own real ones.

Assumptions for the example forecast (all examples): a tour earns GH¢1,170 and costs GH¢860 in direct costs; 40% of tours are sold through hotels at 15% commission (an average of GH¢70.20 a tour); a homestay night earns GH¢220 (room 180 plus meals 40) and costs GH¢70; fixed cash costs are GH¢1,604 a month (staff 904, phone 150, rent 300, marketing 100, insurance share 150); owner drawing GH¢1,000; a 3% tax set-aside on receipts (example, see Unit 6); opening cash GH¢8,000; money is received and paid in the same month (a simplification). The tours and nights per month are an invented seasonal pattern; no verified Ghana seasonal data was found.

Check: 8,000 + 102,810 − 104,425 = 6,385. Notice that cash falls in the slow months (May, June, September and October) and that cash dips to about GH¢4,300 before the December rise. Plan for that.

Stress test. What if only 70% of the tours and nights happen, every month? The same assumptions give a closing cash below zero from September (about −GH¢630), reaching about −GH¢3,140 in November. Fixes: cut the owner drawing from GH¢1,000 to GH¢500, which keeps the lowest cash at about GH¢2,360 (November); delay buying gear; ask for deposits earlier; or add a low-cost slow-season product such as a cooking class.

Panel scoring (20 marks each): customers and product; licences, safety and the community; money (start-up, prices, break-even, forecast); ethics and child protection; clarity and answers to questions. Competent: at least 60 of 100 with no zero in safety, ethics and licensing (author's rule).

Check yourself

1. Why do you run a stress test on your cash-flow forecast?
2. Name two things a model community MoU should say about money and about safety.
3. What is the lean-season reserve in this course?

1. Which Act makes the Ghana Tourism Authority responsible for licensing tourism enterprises?
2. Name the regulation (L.I.) for tour and travel businesses.
3. What did this course find about the GTA fee for a tour operator licence?
4. How do you work out a tour's break-even group size?
5. What is the course rule for every boat or canoe trip?
6. Why must you phone before quoting a published GMMB fort fee?
7. What is a benefit-sharing rule?
8. Name two things the course says never to do with children.
9. What is the cost of registering a sole-proprietor business name in 2026?
10. What is the VAT registration threshold for services in 2026?
11. Is a deposit received in November for a December tour November income? Why?
12. What is the difference between mark-up and margin?

What this module does not cover: a GTA guide, operator or home lodge licence; first aid, lifesaving or boat-handling certificates; the GTA fee amounts, licence term and levy base (none found); the current Ghana exchange rate; whether tours and rooms are VAT-taxable (not verified); public procurement rules for tourism tenders (not verified).

Every source used in this manual is listed, with links, in the Teacher Copy.