Mr Henry Yeleduor, the Upper East Regional Director of the GTA, said the training was to help the operators keep their environment clean, ensure proper storage of food, and promote personal hygiene as germs could easily be transmitted from the cooks and servers onto the food they served.

The nationwide programme, organized under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, was funded through the Tourism Development Fund, and brought together caterers and drinking spot operators from various districts across the Region.

Mr Yeleduor said the public and the increasing number of tourists who visited the Region relied on traditional caterers for food.

He said the Authority was concerned about the quality, hygiene and the environment under which food and drinks were prepared and served.

"We have observed that over the years, when you get to some of these environments where these foods are prepared, you will realise that they are not anything good to write home about."

"We are worried that if we do not educate our people, we will eat their food and fall sick, and that will affect the workforce in the Region..."

"Invariably tourism will also be affected because if there is any adverse report about contaminated food in our 'chop bars' or drinking bars, we will lose tourists and revenue in Region."

Dr Patricia Owusu-Darko, a Senior Lecturer of Food Science at the Kumasi Technical University, who schooled participants on Food Safety and Hygiene, said 2019 was a "Year of Return" as declared by the President and the many people who would be coming from the Diaspora to experience the Ghanaian culture, needed to be fed wholesome food under clean conditions.

She said the Ghanaian culture and food could better be experienced if the tourists visited the traditional restaurants and that the programme was meant to train participants on how to handle and serve food professionally devoid of contamination.

Dr Owusu-Darko exposed the participants to temperature control of food, which she said was critical to preventing bacteria infestation and and multiplying in temperatures that suited it.

Some participants who spoke to the Ghana News Agency after the programme commended the Ghana Tourism Authority for the initiative and called for more training programmes to improve on their skills and quality of service.

Madam Lydia Salifu, a drinking bar operator in the Bolgatanga Municipality, said: "I thought I knew, and was doing the right thing, but after this training, I've realised I know nothing. I have actually learnt a lot."