The recent separation of Ghana’s Ministry of Youth and Sports into two distinct entities—the Ministry of Youth Development and Empowerment and the Ministry of Sports and Recreation—has sparked conversations within the sporting community.
The decision, implemented under the leadership of President John Mahama, aims to give youth-related issues more focused attention while allowing the sports sector to operate independently.
Joseph Nkoo, a representative of Ghana Premier League (GPL) clubs on the Executive Committee of the Ghana League Clubs Association (GHALCA) and a representative of Berekum Chelsea FC, has described the restructuring as a positive step that could result in increased funding for both sectors.
“With the rebranding of these new ministries—the Ministry of Sports and Recreation and the Ministry of Youth Development and Empowerment—I think it’s something that will help increase our budget. It will increase our budget because we often complain that the budget allocated to the sports ministry is too small and, therefore, unable to sufficiently support most of the disciplines.”
According to him, the previous ministry’s focus was heavily skewed toward the Black Stars, often neglecting other sporting disciplines and youth development issues. He believes that dividing the responsibilities between two ministries could lead to larger budgets for each area. With a more specialized approach, he anticipates that this financial boost will help improve various sectors of Ghana’s sports landscape. “If we divide it into two, whatever the case, we’ll have two ministers, and therefore the budget might increase. As a result, this will also help other sectors of the sports ecosystem to grow.”
Despite his optimism, Mr. Nkoo emphasized that the success of the restructured ministries hinges on the President’s choice of appointments. He stressed the importance of selecting leaders who have expertise in the sports sector and a genuine understanding of its challenges.
“The appointments to these ministries will actually determine how serious they’ll be. If he is able to appoint people who are truly part of the sports industry—those who know the intricacies of sports—our problems will be solved.”
He pointed out that while Ghana has numerous policies aimed at promoting sports, the real issue lies in their implementation. Mr. Nkoo also expressed concern about the Ghana Premier League, which he described as the foundation for producing players who eventually represent the national teams.
“Our main and major problem now is the Ghana Premier League. It’s the league that produces the stars who play for the Black Stars and other national teams.”
He urged the yet-to-be-appointed ministers to prioritize the league’s development and find sustainable ways to improve its structure. While hopeful, he cautioned that if the appointments are made based on political affiliations rather than expertise, the issues that have plagued the sector might persist. “We have people who are specialized and capable of doing the work, but if he decides to share the positions with party men, then it might end up the same way.”
Source: A1Radioonline.com | 101.1 MHz | Gifty Eyram Kudiabor | Bolgatanga