Winneba, (C/R) July 21, GNA - The Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr Rashid Pelpuo has called on African countries to integrate sports into their development frame works to manage it as a vehicle towards improved economic, social and health challenges in the communities. He said Africa presently is in dire need of development, peace, tolerance and brotherhood and as such teachers and coaches are expected to use sports and education to teach life values and skills to ensure, fair play, excellence and balance of body and mind. Mr Pelpuo said this in an address read on his behalf by his Deputy, Nii Nortey Dua at the opening of a five-day international workshop for Physical Education Teachers, Coachers and Sports Administrators drawn from three West African countries at the National Sports College in Winneba on Monday.

About 100 participants from Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon are attending the workshop organised by the National Sports College in collaboration with University of Ibadan. The workshop which is under the theme "Sports Management as a tool for National Sports Development and Peace", is been handled by resource persons from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria and the University of Cape Coast and the University of Education, Winneba. Mr Pelpuo noted that to achieve the set objective, "We need collaboration, co-ordination and to strongly emphasize on the importance of internal and external governments and institutional consultation to foster awareness, support, integration and policy consistency of African countries".

The Minister said that Africa needs a new breed of coaches, teachers and administrator who are proactive, creative and innovative to make do with what is available to deliver. "Without this, our big dream of managing sport as a tool for development and peace will be wishful thinking", Mr Pelpuo said it his hope that at the end of the workshop, the participants will be equipped with new knowledge to make them well focused to tackle their jobs to uplift the standard of Physical Education and sports in their countries. 21 July 09