The Ghana Sports Fund has commenced on-the-ground assessments of grassroots sporting activities, with its Administrator and Deputy leading a field visit to the northern zone of the Volta Region during the Senior High Schools inter-zonal athletics finals.

The competition, hosted by Peki Senior High School and Peki Senior High Technical School, brought together 15 schools from five districts and one municipal assembly, marking the climax of this year’s northern zone schools’ sports programme.

Officials say the visit forms part of the Fund’s first official engagement with live grassroots competitions since its establishment by an Act of Parliament.

Fund to Drive Early Talent Development

Administrator of the Fund, Dr David Kofi Wuaku, said the purpose of the visit was to directly observe the conditions under which young athletes are discovered and developed, rather than relying solely on reports from Accra.

According to him, the assessment revealed both promising talent and serious infrastructure and safety gaps.

He noted that many student-athletes compete without proper equipment, with some running barefoot and others performing field events under unsafe conditions, including high jump events using ordinary student mattresses as landing pads.

Dr Wuaku stressed that despite the lack of tools and facilities, exceptional raw talent is evident at the school level and must be deliberately nurtured.

He said the Fund would not centralise talent development but would instead work closely with local organisers, school authorities and the Ghana Education Service to identify and develop athletes from the basic level through senior high school and into tertiary institutions.

He added that the vision aligns with repeated policy emphasis by President John Dramani Mahama, who has highlighted grassroots sports development as a national priority.

Support Must Begin Early — Deputy Administrator

Deputy Administrator Simon Appiah described the challenges facing school sports as enormous but solvable through coordinated national support.

He said the traditional approach — where authorities wait for athletes to struggle independently before offering assistance — must change.

Instead, he emphasised that the nation must become part of an athlete’s development journey from the earliest stages.

He assured that the Fund would collaborate with education and sports authorities to ensure that school competitions are properly financed and held on schedule, noting that delays and cancellations due to funding shortfalls often disrupt athlete preparation and morale.

He also appealed to corporate bodies and individuals to contribute to the Sports Fund to eliminate financial barriers that prevent some zones and regions from progressing to higher levels of competition.

Zone Secretariat Highlights Severe Logistics and Facility Gaps

Northern Zone Sports Federation Secretary John Edem Agbodogli explained that the Volta Region is divided into six sports zones, with the northern zone being one of them. Hosting, he said, rotates among schools with available accommodation and basic facilities.

He disclosed that this year’s event had to be compressed into a few days due to financial constraints, placing excessive physical strain on athletes and limiting effective talent identification.

According to him, the zone lacks essential athletics equipment, including landing foam, crossbars, javelins and discus sets, and must borrow items from individual schools — a process that often results in damage, losses and reluctance from lending institutions.

He further highlighted the dangerous condition of competition surfaces, noting that tracks are uneven and covered with pebbles, causing injuries, particularly at bends where athletes frequently fall.

He added that repeated postponements due to lack of funds affect athlete morale, as students are called into training, stood down and later recalled, weakening preparation and participation levels.

The zone secretariat is therefore appealing for urgent support to provide standard fields, tartan tracks and dedicated equipment to protect athletes and enhance performance.

Push for Infrastructure and Structured Pathways

Officials of the Sports Fund say plans are underway to mobilise resources towards building at least basic, standard sports infrastructure across educational zones and to establish a structured pathway for talent identification and development.

They emphasised that secondary education should serve both academic and talent development purposes, ensuring that students with sporting potential receive discipline, coaching support and academic balance.

With early field assessments now underway, the Fund says measurable improvements in grassroots sports support and infrastructure should begin to take shape in the near term.