Sports Minister visits B/A

The Ministry of Youth and Sports in collaboration with the Ministry of Education has selected Sunyani Senior High School (SHS) as a Centre for Youth Sports Academy in the Brong-Ahafo Region.

Mr. Mahama Ayariga, Minister of Youth and Sports, dropped the hint during a courtesy call on Mr. Justice Samuel Adjei, Deputy Brong-Ahafo-Regional Minister in Sunyani.

The call was part of the Sports Minister’s visit to inspect the Ministry’s projects in the Region.

He informed the Deputy Regional Minister of a number of plans by his ministry to generally improve sports in the country from the regions, particularly through competitions at all levels of educational institutions.

Mr. Ayariga said Brong-Ahafo abounds in sports talents, especially in football, mentioning past and present stars like Kwasi Owusu, Dan Owusu, Awudu Issaka, Asamoah Djan, who have contributed to raise the flag of Ghana high.

He said the proposed Sunyani Youth Sports Academy would embrace all disciplines, including Table Tennis, Basketball, Volleyball, Athletics, Boxing, Hockey and Taekwando,

Mr. Ayariga, however, stressed that athletes for the Sunyani Academy would be selected by experts to be appointed by the Ministry, in conjunction with the Ghana Education Service (GES) through organised Municipal and District Sports competitions in the Region.

The Sports Minister said Brong-Ahafo would not be the only region in the country where Youth Sports Academy would be formed, but similar projects would be done in each of the 10 regions.

Mr. Ayariga said beneficiary pupils and students of the Academies would not only be nurtured from the grass-root level to feed the various national teams in all the sports disciplines, but would also engage their attention during vacation period.

Mr Adjei thanked the Sports Ministry for choosing the region as the first place among others to form such an Academy.

Mr. Ayariga also visited the regional office of the National Sports Council, and inspected the Sunyani Coronation Park, where he urged Mr. Kofi Duku Duodu, Regional Senior Sports Officer, to arrange for the construction of a borehole at the park for the provision of more water to water the pitch regularly.

The absence of a scoreboard at the Park was also a concern to the Sports Minister, and again reminded Mr. Duodu to ensure the erection of one at the place.

At the Sunyani SHS, Madam Georgina Boakye, the Headmistress, thanked the Minister for choosing the school for such a laudable sports project, and promised the co-operation of both teaching and non-teaching staff, to ensure that the project becomes a reality.

Mr. Ayariga and his team made a "whistle-stop" at the Sunyani Polytechnic (S-Poly) where Mr. Kwadwo Appiah, Vice-Rector said lack of sports facilities forced the institution to cancel an international West African Polytechnic Games (WAPOGA) slated for Sunyani about five years ago.

Mr. Samuel Annor, Sports Manager of S-Poly, said the institution had already designed drawings for a new park to contain all sporting disciplines, saying Ministerial support was therefore required now for its implementation, because it had remained on the drawing board since the change of Alhaji Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, a former Sports Minister.

The Sports Minister requested for the designs, and promised the necessary assistance of the Ministry for the execution of the project.

At Kenyase, Mr. Joep Coenen Managing Director of Newmont Ghana Ahafo Mine Company, told the Minister that in 2013 and 2014 Newmont Ahafo Development Foundation (NADeF) allocated GHC 609,607.25 for sports projects and programmes for communities within its catchment area.