The president (5th L), with GOC boss, Sports Minister (4th R) and the delegation
President Akufo-Addo has charged the Minister for Youth and Sports, Mustapha Yussif, to as early as possible come up with modalities and institutionalise a biennial Inter-State Agencies Sports Competition as suggested by the Ghana Olympic Committee (GOC).
The President proposed the initiative when a seven-member GOC delegation called on him at the Jubilee House yesterday.
He recalled with nostalgic memory the glorious days of Ghana Sports and the INDADFA League, which featured most of our then first division league players.
The President also mentioned the likes of Rose Hart, Ebo Bartels, Mike Ahey and Oko Addy, who had a lot of support from their employers during their career.
He asked the Sports Minister to work with the GOC to ensure that the YEA support to our national team athletes is expanded and its impact felt by all.
He said, “We need to be sensitive to gender issues in the administration of sports. There is a need to have more females on the board of our various sports associations.
“The biggest support could come from the private sector, since they dominate the economy, but we as a government and as administrators need to entice them and also change their mindset about the returns on their investment into sports. I believe that the benefits to these private companies are huge.
“The Ministry of Youth and Sports must ensure that incentives such as tax reliefs and recognition of their support at the highest level of government are encouraged.”
The President stated he will encourage GNPC to look at support for the other national teams, who are also doing very well at the international level. He said the approach is a comprehensive sports development policy which focuses on all our sporting disciplines.
He also asked the Sports Minister to work with the Minister for Works and Housing on the issue of naming the current building housing the offices of the GOC as The Olympic House.
The GOC President, Ben Nunoo Mensah, and the Sports Minister in separate submissions mentioned the support for and investment into our national team athletes and coaches, and YEA support as a very laudable initiative and thanked the President for giving his blessing to it, but expressed the wish for it to be renewed for a full year and also for the national team coaches to be added to the programme.
Employment of the various national team athletes into the security services, other state agencies, the adoption of the various national teams by parastatals like GNPC, BOST, GCB, GOIL, Ghana Gas, CBG were also proposed to the president.
By Kofi Owusu Aduonum