Ghana’s Minister of Sports and Recreation, Kofi Adams, has announced that the government is working on introducing a Sports Levy as the main funding source for a new National Sports Fund. The initiative, he said, aims to establish a sustainable framework for supporting sports development nationwide.
Speaking in an interview with Citi FM, the Minister noted that the absence of a dedicated funding structure has long hindered the nation’s ability to support athletes and sporting activities. “We do not have a fund, just like the way we have for education, for health, and the rest. It has actually challenged our support for sports and sporting activities. Young people qualify, they struggle, they go through all the processes, and you are unable to push them to participate in the competition,” he lamented.
According to him, the Sports Fund will serve as a pool into which multiple stakeholders can contribute. “The government has decided to establish a sports fund, a fund into which all manner of contributions will go, the private corporates, the public corporates, individuals, government itself, and through many other sources to use in the development of sports,” Mr. Adams explained.
On the controversial subject of the proposed levy, he stressed that a levy was inevitable for the fund to function effectively. “You can’t establish a fund without a levy. Surely every fund must have a form of a levy that contributes to the fund,” he stated.
The Minister, however, clarified that the exact form the levy will take can only be determined after parliamentary processes. “I can’t specifically say what levy will be approved by parliament or not. The bill will be laid in parliament when parliament resumes, and parliament will go through the processes to get the act passed. Once it is passed, legislation will be developed,” he added.
The Sports Levy Bill, expected to be laid before Parliament when it reconvenes, will mark a significant shift in how Ghana funds sports. If approved, the levy will serve as a steady revenue stream for developing infrastructure, supporting athletes, and promoting sporting events both locally and internationally.
