The Mövenpick Ambassador Hotel Accra has unveiled its Green Stay Initiative, setting a bold new benchmark for sustainable hospitality in Ghana and the wider West African region.
The launch event, held at the hotel’s premises, brought together leaders from government, business, and the sustainability community, all united in a shared vision of building an eco-conscious future for tourism and hospitality.
Speaking at the launch, Isaac Okpoti Adjei, General Manager of Mövenpick Ambassador Hotel Accra, urged the industry to embrace sustainability not as a buzzword, but as both an operational imperative and a moral responsibility. He outlined a vision of “conscious luxury” where guest comfort aligns with environmental and social responsibility.
“Our guests no longer ask only for leisure and luxury,” Mr. Adjei said. “They ask for experiences that are meaningful and sustainable.”
Across the Accor Group, which operates more than 5,700 hotels in over 110 countries, sustainability is embedded into business operations. Impressively, 88% of Accor properties have already eliminated over 50 single-use plastic products, signaling a global shift away from wasteful practices.
Mr. Adjei emphasized that the Green Stay Initiative is more than a hotel programme, it is a call to transform the entire hospitality ecosystem.
At Mövenpick Accra, sustainability is already visible through energy-efficient lighting, smart water systems, food waste reduction, and local sourcing. However, he stressed that hotels cannot act in isolation.
“Sustainability must not be limited to hotel walls,” he explained. “It must shape how we design, build, procure, train, and engage across our entire value chain.”
Mövenpick is aligning its suppliers with international sustainability standards, rethinking procurement to support circular economies, and integrating carbon-conscious practices.
With Accor serving over 200 million meals annually worldwide, the sector holds both the power and responsibility to influence food systems and promote sustainable guest choices.
Highlighting the urgency of climate change and urbanisation, Mr. Adjei described Mövenpick as a custodian of Ghana’s natural beauty and heritage. He applauded government efforts to encourage green growth but called for stronger collaboration between hotels, businesses, suppliers, and communities.
The event’s Guest of Honour, Hon. Kenneth Gilbert Adjei, Minister for Works, Housing and Water Resources, hailed the initiative as a model of private-sector leadership aligned with Ghana’s development goals.
“This is not only about environmental compliance,” the Minister said. “It is about innovation, competitiveness, and long-term value creation in an increasingly sustainability-conscious global tourism market.”
Under the government’s RESET Agenda, measures are being rolled out to support the shift to sustainable business practices. These include: tax incentives and duty waivers for green technologies, technical support for hospitality businesses from the EPA and Energy Commission and investment facilitation through the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre for eco-friendly tourism projects.
The Minister also highlighted plans to integrate green building standards into new public infrastructure, expand renewable energy adoption, promote waste-to-energy and water recycling initiatives, and deepen alignment with climate adaptation strategies.
Adding her voice, Lydia Lamisi Akanvariba, Minister of State for Public Sector Reforms, speaking on behalf of the Minister for Tourism, noted that tourism contributed $4.8 billion to Ghana’s GDP in 2024 but warned it must not come at the expense of the environment.
She cited examples such as coastal erosion in Cape Coast and Keta, fragile ecosystems at Lake Bosomtwe, and threats to Kakum and Mole forest reserves as urgent reminders of the stakes involved.
“The Green Stay Initiative is timely and essential,” she said. “It challenges us to move beyond business-as-usual and to place sustainability at the heart of tourism policy, planning, and practice.”
Looking ahead, Mövenpick has pledged to hold quarterly workshops and collaborate with government, academia, and industry partners to build capacity for sustainable hospitality. Mr. Adjei closed by urging that even the smallest actions from reusing towels to sourcing local food can create lasting change.
“Let us make today the beginning of a new chapter,” he said. “One where sustainability is not a department or a label, but a way of thinking, building, and living.”