Africa-Press – Ghana. President John Dramani Mahama has called on corporate Ghana to support the funding of the nation’s sporting activities.
The President made the call in his address at the maiden Presidential Dialogue with the Private Sector in Accra.
“This is a sector often seen as social but fundamentally economic, and that’s the area of sports and recreation. Sports today influence global markets, tourism, media rights, youth employment, creative industry, and investment flows. In 2026, Ghana stands at the center of several global platforms,” he stated.
“Our national football team, Black Stars, is preparing for its fifth FIFA World Cup appearance. Our women’s soccer team, Black Queens, heads into continental competition with renewed credibility. We also prepare for the 2026 Commonwealth Games and the 2026 Summer Youth Olympics.”
President Mahama emphasised that these moments position Ghana before global audiences and investors in ways that few sectors could do.
“We will therefore establish the Ghana Sports Fund, a transparent financing framework for grassroots development, school sports, athlete welfare, infrastructure modernisation, and long-term talent pathways. No country achieves sporting excellence without deliberate funding systems,” President Mahama said.
“I invite Corporate Ghana to view this not as charity, but as a partnership in national development. Government has created the framework, let us build the systems.”
The President proposed a covenant between the Government and the Private Sector.
He said the Government must commit to maintaining stable macroeconomic policy declaring that macroeconomic policy affects their businesses.
“We must maintain regulatory clarity. Regulations must be clear and simple and not intended to obstruct private business. We must look at the whole structure of industrial financing and apply industrial financing reform,” the President said.
“We must enforce fair trade, so fair trade enforcement.”
He noted that the Government also commits to improving infrastructure, including the roads, utilities, power, water, so that the private sector and industry could expand and thrive. The government commits to regular consultation with the private sector to resolve the challenges and obstacles that prevent their businesses from growing.
“In return, I ask the private sector to invest and scale up domestic production, create additional Ghanaian jobs, prioritize local content, invest in skills development, maintain international standards for our products, and engage transparently in policy dialogue with government,” he said.
“The Ghana we all seek will not be built by speeches. It will be built by factories operating at scale. It will be built by farms that are linked to processing plants. It will be built by laboratories that produce pharmaceuticals. It will be built by industrial parks that are producing for Ghana and exporting to Africa and beyond,” he added.
“Today is a Presidential Dialogue with the private sector, let us move from dialogue to delivery as we leave this place. Together we will build an industrial Ghana that is competitive, resilient, and prosperous.”
