Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku
Ghana Football Association (GFA) President, Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku, has hailed Loughborough University for collaborating with Radford University for a strategic partnership.
The partnership seeks for a thriving ecosystem for sports development in the country.
He commended the prestigious university during a colloquium arranged in collaboration with Ghana’s private University, Radford University, in Accra on Monday.
The forum sought to bridge the gap between sports education and the sports industry.
And in his speech, the GFA boss highlighted several ground-breaking policies being championed by the GFA, including the Football School, DNA and the Women’s Football Strategy among others.
He noted, “I am here representing the biggest and most powerful federation in Ghana – football, and to express and show the desire and commitment of our football industry and players towards a project like this.
“I have said on numerous platforms that the best way to improve our sport, is for those of us in leadership positions to create avenues and platforms for people within football to exchange knowledge, learn and to give.
“If you have followed the work we’ve been doing at the GFA, we announced a vehicle called the GFA School – which is a platform that we’ve created to allow our people in the football industry to gain formal education in partnership with universities.”
He added, “Following that, we announced our DNA which defines our football and that document is a scientific paper prepared for us by the technical directorate through knowledge exchange.
“We have also rolled out the Women’s Football Strategy and soon the Men’s Football Strategy is going to be rolled out, all through processes like this. What we have today is perhaps a much bigger one because we have a big institution like Loughborough University interested in establishing presence in partnership with like-minded institutions with our support to build our sport ecosystem.
“Sports is more scientific than we think and for those of us who want to make a life out of sports, it’s important we gain more knowledge, exchange and share, and that can only be done with tried and tested institutions like Loughborough. If and when this relationship get off the tartan tracks, not only people who work in the sports of football ecosystem in Ghana, but also people in the West African sub-region, will be key beneficiaries of such partnership.”
Loughborough University and Radford University have formed a partnership that seeks to offer courses in sports administration at the Borteyman facility pending an approval from the country’s cabinet.
By Kofi Owusu Aduonum
