For the past week, the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) for the 13th African Games, Ghana 2023, has been meeting with key Media Houses in the Country to share the President’s vision/legacy for the Games.The team led by the Chairman, Dr. Kwaku Ofosu- Asare, the Chief Operating Officer, Dr. Emmanuel Owusu-Ansah and Reks Brobby, the Deputy Chief Operating Officer made the visits.
The legacy the President of Ghana wants to leave, besides hosting and organizing the games AND building a 50,000 seater Olympic Stadium at Borteyman, is to establish a University of Sport for Development, at the same site AFTER the games so THAT too doesn’t turn into a white elephant.
What is a University of Sport for Development?
According to Reks Brobby, the Deputy Chief Operating Officer, Sports has two dimensions; “Sports for Excellence” and “Sport for Development”. Sports for Excellence is the sports discipline we compete in to win medals and trophies. That is why Sports for Excellence is referred to as an end in itself.
But Sport for Development is the intentional use of sports to achieve national, continental and global development goals, notably, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union Agenda 2063; the Africa we want.
That is why Sport for Development is referred to as using sports as a means to an end.
The University of Sport for Development will study and research into how to use sports to achieve national integration and cohesion, socio-economic development, peaceful co-existence, women empowerment, poverty alleviation, crime prevention, social inclusion, health promotion and many other development goals. This University of Sport for Development is the first in West Africa and the second in Africa.
The President of the Republic of Ghana has been the Co-Chair of the UN Eminent Group of Advocates for the SDGs. Therefore his vision is establishing a University that will use sports to achieve the SDG’s.
From Sammy Heywood Okine
