The government of Ghana spent US$4.5 million on the senior national football team, the Black Stars, at the just-ended Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Egypt, Youth and Sports Minister Isaac Asiamah has told parliament.
The Black Stars, who were tipped as pre-tournament favourites, exited at the round of 16 following a 4 – 5 penalty shootout defeat to Tunisia.
Prior to the departure of the team, there were calls for their budget to be made public but that was not done.
Parliament recently demanded an account of expenditure for the Afcon, thus, Mr Asiamah’s appearance before the house on Wednesday, 24 July 2019.
In a statement on the floor, Mr Asiamah said out of an amount of US$6.3 million earmarked for the team’s campaign, US$4.5 million was spent. US$1.7 million of the taxpayers’ money was saved.
Meanwhile, the winner of the competition, Algeria, walked away with the trophy and a sum of US$4.5 million as prize money.
The silver medalist, Senegal, walked away with US$2.5 million while semi-finalists and quarter-finalists bagged US$2 million and US$1 million, respectively.
Source: Ghana/ClassFMonline.com/91.3FM
