The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo on Tuesday announced a financial reward of US$330, 000 to members of the national U-20 make football team, the Black Satellites for winning the 2021 U-20 Africa Nations Cup (AFCON) competition held in Mauritania.
According to the president, each of the 27 players of the Black Satellites team will receive $10, 000 from the government for winning the Confederation of Africa Football (CAF) Under-20 Championship.
Out of the said amount, the President explained that each playing staff would be entitled to $5,000 in cash and an investment facility in the form of a bond worth $5,000 which would mature in 10 years.
Additionally, the state rewarded each of the nine members of the Technical Team $10,000 for their contribution to the success of the team, making it a total of $330,000 on the entire team.
He said the investment was necessary due to the short life span of the playing career of sportsmen and women.
President Akufo Addo also made a personal pledge of $5,000 each to goalkeeper Danlad Ibrahim, Captain Afriyie Barnieh, Overall Best Player Fatawu Issahaku and Head Coach Karim Zito.
Ghana beat Uganda 2-0 in the final to win a record fourth African title on Saturday, March 6, 2021, at the Olympics Stadium in Nouakchott, Mauritania.
Meanwhile, delivering his first State of the Nation Address in his second term, President Akufo-Addo hoped that the Satellites victory marks a new era of success in Ghana’s football.
“This is a special occasion for me to congratulate the Black Satellites on their splendid victory in winning the country’s fourth U-20 African Cup of Nations trophy when they defeated Uganda.
“I thank the Black Satellites and the technical and management team for their Independence Day gift. Hopefully this should be the beginning of a new era of success in Ghana football,” he said.
Additionally, President Akufo-Addo was hopeful of seeing spectators fill the stands when things return to normalcy amid the Coronavirus pandemic.
He also mentioned government’s readiness to provide maximum support to the Local Organising Committee (LOC) to ensure a successful organization of the 2023 African Games.
