Facilities in Tamale for CAN 2008 on course

Tamale, July 25, (Caesar), GNA - Mr. Osei Bonsu Amoah, Deputy Minister for Education, Science and Sports has expressed satisfaction at the progress of work in the construction of a stadium in Tamale for CAN 2008.

"I am impressed with the speed at which the contractors are working on the stadium, which will be completed ahead of schedule. I also inspected the site for the 30 billion cedis hostels at the University for Development Studies (UDS), new campus and the contractors were busily clearing the place for the project, which I think is on course," he said.

Mr. Amoah on Tuesday said this during a visit to the construction sites for the new stadium and a two storey hostel for CAN 2008, for which Tamale is listed as one of the host cities. The hostel would accommodate 448 people and would be handed over to UDS authorities after the soccer event to solve their student accommodation problems.

Prince Oduro Mensah, Chief Executive Officer of the National Sports Council accompanied Mr. Amoah to the Northern Region to see preparations being made, aside the construction of the stadium and other facilities towards the event.

Mr. Amoah will also meet with Directors of the Non-Formal Education in the region to hold discussions with them on how best the sector could be improved.

The Minister called on Ghanaians, particularly those working on CAN 2008 facilities to be patriotic enough and ensure that equipment and other facilities meant for the work were not diverted but used for the intended purpose.

He said sports attract income more than any other activity in the world and called for measures from both the public and the private sectors to help develop and sustain it in the country. Prince Oduro Mensah appealed to NGOs, District Assemblies and other cooperate bodies to invest in sports, particularly soccer to promote unity among the citizenry.

He advised citizens of the Northern Region, particularly those from the Tamale Metropolis to comport themselves before, during and after the event in 2008 so that subsequent events would be hosted in the region.