2026 World Cup: US Embassy verified only 2 of 50 media names submitted by GTA – Minority

The Minority in Parliament has alleged that only two of the 50 media personnel submitted by the Ghana Tourism Authority (GTA) to the United States Embassy for activities surrounding the 2026 World Cup were verified as professional media practitioners.

Ranking Member of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Sports, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, said the names were subjected to due diligence by the US Embassy’s Fraud Prevention Unit, which identified only two individuals as genuine media practitioners.

“Of the 50 names submitted, only two persons, Philip Narh and Andy Dosty of Multimedia, both associated with Multimedia, were identified as media practitioners,” he said.

Assafuah claimed the remaining 48 individuals did not have demonstrable professional media backgrounds based on records available to the Minority.

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He said the revelation raises questions about the criteria used by the GTA to compile and submit the list, particularly in relation to visa allocations secured for the World Cup.

According to Assafuah, the GTA CEO, Maame Efua Houadjeto, was allocated 400 visa slots by the US Embassy and another 600 by the Canadian Embassy.

“If these allocations are accurate, which I believe they are accurate, the public is entitled to know how many visas were ultimately issued, how many applications were rejected and how the allocated slots were utilized,” he said.

He further alleged that some individuals on the list paid between $8,000 and $9,000 to the GTA CEO in connection with World Cup arrangements.



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