Accra, April 4, GNA – Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia has made a strong case to the National Football League (NFL), the American professional football, to establish an NFL Africa Academy in Ghana to unearth and develop talents from the Continent.
Dr Bawumia, who hosted a delegation of the NFL at the Jubilee House, said Ghana, with a multi-talented youth, as well as being a peaceful and a business-friendly nation, provided a congenial environment for the National Football League Africa Academy to help unearth and develop talents for American professional football and create opportunities for the youth.
The delegation’s visit follows a meeting in New York earlier this year between the Office of the Vice President and the NFL, which discussed potentials and opportunities in the League expanding its operations in Ghana for talent discovery and development.
Subsequent to the meeting, the National Football League had selected Ghana to host an NFL Africa Camp in June, this year, to identify talents for development.
Dr Bawumia expressed gratitude to the League for choosing Ghana to host the talent discovery NFL Africa Camp and said the platform would create opportunities for the young ones.
“I am happy that you have decided to make the NFL Africa Camp happen here in Ghana. It is an opportunity for young people in this country,” he said.
“We have a very strong, athletic and intelligent youth who are waiting for such opportunities and I am sure once this comes and awareness grows, they are going to take advantage of what is on offer to open doors for our young people. ”
On the long-term promotion and development of the NFL in Ghana and the African Continent, the Vice President noted that establishing an academy, in the model of a football academy, would be a great way of developing NFL talents and also providing the youth alternative career paths through education and sports.
“The talent is here across all sports. We have a very strong athletic and intelligent youth who are waiting for such opportunities.”
The Vice President assured the delegation of government’s commitment to sports development and support for positive sports initiatives, which would open doors for the development of the youth.
“I am a sports enthusiast, but I am also an economist and I see the potential of sports contributing to the growth of the economy and offering opportunities to the youth.”
Members of NFL delegation, including Ghanaian NFL star, Jeremy Owusu-Koramoah, and two time Super Bowl winner from Nigeria, Osi Umenyiora, commended Dr Bawumia for showing keen interest in pushing for the presence of the NFL academy in Ghana.
They also thanked him for the meeting in New York, and welcoming them to his office for further discussions.
Source: Ghana News Agency
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