Yaw Ampofo Ankrah, Director General of the National Sports Authority (NSA) is a man of style whose ways and means of doing things may be different but he likes to produce results which is the most important.
Since he assumed the hot seat at the NSA he has not had it easy but he has tried to find solutions to the maintenance and sustenance of the nation’s sports facilities.
Ghana boasts of standard class facilities in Accra, Kumasi, Cape Coast, Tamale and Essipong in Sekondi.
These facilities have one major problem which is maintenance and it does not come easy without funds and the culture of the people.
The Yaw Ampofo Ankrah administration has been able to hold the forts for Accra to host African Cup and World Cup qualifying matches.
The Cape Coast and Kumasi stadiums have also hosted some matches but the facilities must be polished.
Tamale has been in use by the local people and they also need to keep the facility in good shape.
But the fascinating news going round now is on the work going on at Sekondi.
According to Yaw Ampofo Ankrah, the majestic Esipong stadium is almost ready for a return to continental action, and it is part of the process to get existing facilities in good use even before the new stadiums promised by President John Dramani Mahama are constructed.
Over the past several months, the steady work that has been going on at the Essipong Stadium is finally about to yield results.
The majestic edifice was built by the Shanghai Construction Company Group of China as part of a dual-stadium contract with the Ghanaian government.
The joint package total was $77 million, which was split equally to build identical 20,000-capacity venues in both Tamale (the Aliu Mahama Sports Stadium) and Essipong.
The construction wrapped up in late 2007 ahead of hosting matches for the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations.
The counties that were based in the Western region were Mali, Nigeria, Benin and Ivory Coast.
Unfortunately, the lack of a well structured, well trained and fully equipped maintenance department with accompanying maintenance funds, left the venue at the mercy of weather conditions, squatters, thieves, encroachers and almost complete neglect.
However, with the return of the NDC and the second coming of President Mahatma, the RESET is steadily and surely changing the narrative.
Now, with just a few minor changes remaining, Esipong will be an available option for major global sports events.
With the stadium back on its feet, big time sports in the Western region are also set to bounce back and feed the sports tourism economy.
Apart from the annex, there is also Gyandu park, Essikadu and Fijai which are all ready to be upgraded to serve as training pitches for teams in any international tournament.
Yaw Ampofo Ankrah said the cycle of repair and re-investment is expected to spread across other regions in due course.
He has appealed to the vociferous Ghanaian media to use the same energy to promote the good news about Essipong as they do in lamenting about challenges.
He urged the positive media not to be muted, but appreciation for ongoing construction, developmental works across the country as part of the resetting agenda.
Certainly Ghanaians love sports and what makes sports attractive is the facilities used, the athletes who perform and the spectators or fans who watch.
Ghana Sports is on a rebranding and rebuilding process and very soon the results will show.
But for now we commend and congratulate Yaw Ampofo Ankrah for his vision and job done so far.
