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Mrs Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, on Monday said Africa urgently needed an extensive campaign to promote and establish its brand image. She said without improving Africa�s brand equity and elevating the tourism image of our respective countries, the continents tourism potentials would not be realized and development efforts would be seriously undermined essentially because of market ignorance. Mrs Ofosu-Adjare made the observation at the opening ceremony of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) regional conference on the theme �enhancing brand Africa; fostering tourism development,� in Accra. She said brand communicated and embodied a promise about the nature, essence, and inherent rationale and emotional reward of the tourism experience. She said her ministry believed that branding Africa would focus on stimulating travel demand and unlocking the benefits associated with tourism growth, saying that Africa had been recognized as a key tourism destination, and it was for that reason that the continent had to put its best foot forward in the quest to harness the immense potential that existed in the international tourism market. �Enhancing brand Africa is the combination of a large variety of actions in the area of culture and creative arts development, respect for nature and the environment, the conscious development of tourism sites and destinations, promoting the positive moral, social, and ethical values of the people and ensuring the safety of experiencing the African tourism package�, she said. Mr Taleb Rifai, Secretary General, UNWTO, said tourism had become a fundamental instrument of economic growth and inclusive development across all regions in the world with over one billion international tourists travelling the world each year. He said Africa had come of age as one of the world�s fastest growing tourism regions, rising from 26 million international tourists in 2000 to 56 million in 2014, contributing over US$36 billion to the African economy. He said tourists-strong expansion in Africa had stimulated economic progress, poverty alleviation and environmental conservation, ultimately making a positive difference in the lives of millions of people. Mr Rifai noted that in spite of the dynamic growth, Africa continued to face many challenges that impeded tourisms development and transformative potential in the region, saying �Africa�s image struggles with a negative default setting, fueled by unflattering stereotypes and the broad generalization of crises situations in specific locations.� He said the conference was a positive step in redefining brand Africa as a world class, progressive tourism destination as it would be exploring the key challenges and opportunities in building a stronger image of Africa in today�s competitive global market place, leveraging the new digital environment, as well as creating closer synergies among African nations to better position a common African tourism brand. He said a strong tourism sector in Africa could have a transformative effect in the region as a powerful tool for development and that a strong tourism sector in Africa depended on a strong image of the region. Mr Rifai encouraged the global community, the international media, and all tourism stakeholders to be part of the new vision for brand Africa by sharing the positive stories and experience of the continent.