Isha Johansen (M) with prison officials
A FIFA Foundation Board Member, Isha Johansen, has called for stronger collaboration to harness football as a catalyst for social change and prison reform across Africa.
She made the call during a courtesy visit to the Director-General of the Ghana Prison Service, Mrs. Patience Baffoe-Bonnie, in Accra, as part of her regional engagement tour promoting football for rehabilitation, reintegration, and social development within correctional institutions.
Commending the Ghana Prison Service for its progressive approach, Madam Johansen praised the Service’s commitment to inmate welfare, skills development, and rehabilitation.
She lauded Mrs. Baffoe-Bonnie’s “visionary and transformative leadership,” urging her to sustain programmes that restore purpose and hope to inmates.
Drawing from her extensive experience as a former FIFA Council and CAF Executive Committee member, as well as past President of the Sierra Leone Football Association, Madam Johansen shared success stories of football-based rehabilitation projects in Sierra Leone and Liberia.
She noted that the sport has helped inmates develop discipline, teamwork, and self-confidence — essential values for positive behavioural change.
As part of her proposals, Madam Johansen suggested the creation of a “Football for Reform Summit” to be hosted in Ghana.
The summit would bring together Football Associations and Prison Services from Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone to exchange best practices and explore innovative ways of integrating football into correctional reform initiatives.
In her response, Mrs. Baffoe-Bonnie expressed gratitude for Madam Johansen’s visit and her commitment to advancing the Service’s reformation agenda.
She commended the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) for their support through the GFA Foundation Ghana Prisons Project and the CAF Football for Reform initiative.
Both parties underscored their shared commitment to promoting dignity, purpose, and transformation within correctional facilities, emphasizing that football can serve as a powerful instrument for social change.
BY Wletsu Ransford