President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Kurt Okraku, has urged inmates of the Nsawam Medium Security Prison that life beyond prison walls is still possible.

Speaking during a special outreach programme organised by the KN Foundation, the Professional Footballers Association of Ghana (PFAG), the Ghana Football Association and the Joana Gyan Cudjoe Foundation, Mr Okraku noted that future is brighter for all inmates.

“Do not consider your stay here as a permanent one,” he told inmates during his address.

“Be positive, be hopeful, that one day soon, and I mean very, very soon, you would also be out of here and continue your normal lives.”

The event, spearheaded by former Ghana Football Association president Kwesi Nyantakyi and supported by Member of Parliament for Amenfi Central, Joana Gyan Cudjoe, brought together former Black Stars players, football administrators and musicians for a day of donations, health screening, entertainment and a friendly football match with inmates.

Present at the event were football legends including Abedi Ayew Pele, Anthony Baffoe, Yussif Chibsah, Augustine Ahinful, David Accam, Mohammed Gargo, Abdul Majeed Waris and Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu.

Dreams FC president Mohammed Jiji Alifoe, Ghana League Clubs Association chairman John Ansah, veteran coach Abdul Karim Zito and New Edubiase owner Abdul Salam Yakubu were also in attendance.

Kurt Okraku, while praising the initiative, said the message delivered earlier by Kwesi Nyantakyi should inspire inmates to remain optimistic despite their circumstances.

“I’m extremely happy to be here this morning to join our leader, the former president, on this all-important assignment,” he said.

“I believe listening to him should give all of us a sense of hope and some amount of positivity about our collective future.”

The outreach programme featured health screening exercises, National Health Insurance Scheme registration and renewals, musical performances and the donation of food items and sporting equipment to inmates.

Among the items donated were bags of rice, cartons of bottled water, footballs, jerseys, bibs and tracksuits. Each of the prison’s eight blocks received jerseys and footballs, while additional sporting equipment was presented to the prison’s main football team.

Musicians including D Cryme, Stay Jay and Pataapa added excitement to the occasion with live performances that transformed the prison atmosphere into one of celebration and hope.

Earlier, Joana Gyan Cudjoe had also been visibly emotional after seeing young inmates at the facility for the first time.

“If you've noticed that I have tears, it's because I never knew we had very young boys here,” she said.