President of the African Paralympic Committee (AfPC), Mr. Samson Deen, has issued a passionate call for national unity and a renewed commitment to positive sports branding, urging Ghanaians to collectively promote sports as a national asset capable of attracting investment, creating opportunities, and elevating the country’s global image.

Speaking at the official launch of the Countdown to the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Accra, Mr. Deen stressed that the future growth of Ghanaian sports depends not only on athletes and administrators but also on the media, corporate institutions, government agencies, and the general public working together to project a positive narrative.

According to him, persistent negativity, public disputes, and excessive criticism within the sports ecosystem continue to undermine efforts to attract private-sector investment and corporate sponsorship.

“Sports is one of Ghana’s greatest national products. If we continue to speak negatively about ourselves and our institutions, we make it difficult for investors and corporate Ghana to see the opportunities that exist within our sporting sector,” Mr. Deen stated.

The AfPC President emphasized that corporate sponsorship is driven by confidence, visibility, and value creation, and therefore sports stakeholders must consciously package and market Ghanaian sports in a way that demonstrates professionalism, growth potential, and national impact.

“For corporate Ghana to come in and support us, we need to brand our sports in a way that makes everyone understand that the time is now. We must collectively create an environment that encourages investment rather than discourages it,” he added.

Mr. Deen expressed concern that sports leaders often spend more time defending institutions and seeking support than focusing on athlete development, infrastructure, talent identification, and international competitiveness.

He further noted that sports should never be viewed as the responsibility of a single organization, whether the Ghana Olympic Committee, Ghana Paralympic Committee, African Paralympic Committee, National Sports Authority, or the Ministry responsible for Sports.

Instead, he described sports as a shared national enterprise belonging to every Ghanaian.

“Sports does not belong to one institution. Sports belongs to Ghana. Sports belongs to all of us. Therefore, we all have a responsibility to protect it, promote it, and contribute to its growth,” he said.

With the countdown to the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games officially underway, Mr. Deen called for stronger collaboration among sports federations, corporate organizations, government institutions, development partners, and media practitioners to position Ghana as a leading sporting nation on the African continent.