The Kumasi Zoo, also known as the Kumasi Zoological Garden is one of the last remaining zoos in Ghana, located in the Ashanti regional capital, Kumasi. The Zoo occupies a total land size of 370 acres between the Centre for National Culture and Kejetia Bus Terminal.
The construction of the zoo began in 1951 but was officially completed and opened in 1957 under the presidency of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah in a bid to conserve wild animals especially the ones which are scarce and on the brink of extinction.
Over the course of the decades, the zoo has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in Ghana for animal lovers who visit the zoo to have a close look at some of the animals kept there.
However, in recent times, the Zoo has been on the brink of closing down due to the lack of government support for the centre. Several news reports claimed visits to the site had decreased drastically over the last few years, while facilities at the centre keep getting old without any effort by government and responsible authorities to replace them.
Animals such as lions, Civets, Olive Baboon, Warthog, Bay Dulker, Green Monkey, Ostrich and Chimpanzee which used to abound at the Zoo had decreased greatly in terms of numbers, and only a handful are left.
Nevertheless, the Kumasi Zoo remains one of the most patronized tourist sites in the Ashanti Region, with the potential to become one of Ghana’s finest tourist destinations if the state would give it the needed support.
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