PurposeThe paper examines the role of stakeholders in tourism and hospitality industry to ensure sustainability. This study focuses on investigating how stakeholders view can influence business sustainability in the tourism industry in Ghana and Africa. The study also looks at the future of sustainable tourism activities in Ghana and Africa.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative approach was adopted and interviewees were purposively selected. Using the semi-structured interview 12 people were interviewed and NVivo used to analyse the data. The study was carried out in Accra the capital city of Ghana. Using the stakeholder based theory and resource based theory (RBT) the study addresses how sustainable competitive advantage can be developed.FindingsResults shows how stakeholders involved such employees, government, community/society, private sector and individual shop owners perceive factors that enhance or limit progress in tourism. Some challenges they encounter include high level of illiteracy, lack of education for upcoming youth, low funding and publicity, lack of the enforcement of laws in the sector. The findings also indicated that to ensure sustainability in the industry the products should be unique, valuable, rare, non-substitutable and non-imitable and has to be advertised.Research limitations/implicationsResearchers encountered difficulties in eliciting answers from stakeholders who are experts and managers in the industry because of their busy schedules. The researcher admits that this research work which is carried out only in Ghana cannot be used to generalise an assumption for the entire industry sectors in Africa and beyond. The sample size could be improved and the study could be conducted in other African countries for the purposes of comparison.Practical implicationsThis study reveals how stakeholders view developments in the tourism sector and this can be used as a guide in developing policies and marketing strategies in the tourism industry. Both theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.Originality/valueVery little literature has been written on stakeholders' view on business sustainability in the tourism industry in Ghana. Moreover the use of stakeholder and resource based view theories application in developing competitive advantage in the developing country perspective is unique. The findings in no small way will somehow benefit the government and industry stakeholders by providing the latest views and perspectives in Ghana.

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