Ghana secures $3.5m Korean funding to restore historic Forts and Castles

Ghana has secured a significant financial commitment of US$3.5 million from the Korean National Commission for UNESCO to restore six of the country's iconic Forts and Castles. The funding was announced following Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts Minister Abla Dzifa Gomashie's official visit to the Republic of Korea, where she led Ghana's delegation to the 48th Session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in Busan.

The restoration project represents a major boost for Ghana's cultural heritage preservation efforts. The Korean funding will directly support conservation activities at six selected Forts and Castles, working in tandem with the Ghanaian government's implementation of UNESCO recommendations to ensure these globally significant monuments remain protected for future generations.

Broader support for heritage management

Beyond the Korean contribution, Ghana's diplomatic engagement yielded additional commitments from international heritage organisations. The Africa World Heritage Fund agreed to provide specialised human resource development and capacity-building programmes, strengthening how Ghana's Ministry of Tourism and the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board manage and conserve heritage sites.

The World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia and the Pacific Region (WHIPIC) also pledged support, committing to deliver technical training for Ghana Museums and Monuments Board officers. This training will focus on heritage site interpretation and visitor experience management, enhancing how Ghanaians and tourists engage with these historic spaces.

During the Busan visit, six Ghanaian officials completed an intensive capacity-building programme in Seoul organised by the Korean National Commission for UNESCO. The beneficiaries, drawn from the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, the Ghana National Commission for UNESCO, the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board and the Environmental Protection Agency, received specialist training on managing climate change impacts on cultural heritage sites—a critical concern as Ghana's monuments face increasingly severe environmental pressures.

Why it matters for Ghana

Ghana's Forts and Castles, particularly those along the coast, stand as harrowing testaments to the transatlantic slave trade and remain some of Africa's most visited heritage sites. Their preservation is not merely a cultural imperative but an economic one. These monuments are major tourism attractions that generate revenue, create employment and enhance Ghana's global standing as a keeper of important world history.

The international support secured also signals confidence in Ghana's commitment to heritage conservation at a time when many African nations struggle to fund preservation efforts. By strengthening technical capacity within local institutions like the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board, these partnerships ensure that Ghana builds sustainable, home-grown expertise rather than remaining dependent on external restoration teams.

Minister Gomashie's visit underscores the current government's prioritisation of cultural heritage as a development tool. President John Dramani Mahama's administration has framed heritage protection as central to tourism growth, education, job creation and broader national development—a strategic positioning that aligns Ghana's past with its economic future.

The training initiatives also address an often-overlooked challenge: how heritage sites themselves adapt to climate change. As Ghana's coastline faces increasing erosion and its monuments encounter new environmental stresses, having locally trained officers equipped with international best practices could prove invaluable in long-term preservation strategies.