Isaac Asiamah has been very lucky - Woyome

Chairman of the Parliamentary select committee for sports, Kwabena Woyome believes Youth and Sports Minister, Isaac Asiamah has been very lucky since taking over the sector.

When asked to assess the performance of the the Sports Minister, Hon Kwabena Wayome said, “I will say that I think he's been a very lucky Minister, lucky Minister in the sense that unlike the other Ministers previously they had challenges with funds to really get things done in the name of the youth so that you can blend sports and the youth together and have things running and be seen to be doing so much,” Hon. Woyome told Hot FM.

The Youth and Sports Ministry in recent times has struggled with raising funds to meet its numerous financial demands from sports federations and also the building and maintaining of sports infrastructure. Many have attributed this to the paucity of resources allocated to the sector.

However, Hon. Woyome, who doubles as a member of Parliament for South Tongu constituency, has indicated that the erstwhile Mahama administration helped solve the funding problem by passing the sports law which established the national sports authority.

He indicated that the 5% from the common fund dedicated to the sports authority has made it possible for the current Sports Minister to undertake a lot of infrastructural development for the sector thus making him lucky.

Hon. Woyome revealed that GH¢80million had been allocated to the Ministry in 2017

Parliament passed the Sports Bill in October 2016 which established the National Sports Commission to provide for the development, promotion and management of amateur and professional sports.

It was also to enable the country to operate its sports in conformity with international law.

He attributed all the infrastructural projects being undertaken by the current Minister to former President Mahama ingenuity.

“The sector is now very buoyant. What I have noticed was that, virtually all the youth training centres or youth excellence centres, you can call it stadium, that are being built in the various regions and etc. the source of funding is the creativity, innovative ideas and the visionary leadership of president Mahama.”

The Youth and Sports Ministry has expressed its intention of building youth sports centers in all the ten regions and has already cut sods in the Volta Region, Eastern Region, Western Region and the Ashanti Region.

A $4million worth of renovation works have also began at the Azumah Nelson Sports Complex in Kaneshie.