Former Minister of Youth and Sports, Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye, has criticised the outgoing President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, for what he described as a lackluster approach to sports development.

The Akufo-Addo government has been marked by poor performances from various national teams. Notably, the Black Stars experienced their worst performances in AFCON history, exiting the competition at the group stage in both 2021 and 2023 without securing a single win.

Similarly, the Black Princesses were eliminated at the group stage of the U20 Women’s World Cup in September 2024, while the Black Galaxies failed to qualify for the 2025 African Nations Championship (CHAN) in December 2024.

Vanderpuye believes these failures highlight the decline in sports development under the Akufo-Addo administration.

Speaking after President Akufo-Addo’s final State of the Nation Address on Friday, January 3, 2025, Vanderpuye did not hold back in his criticism, describing the government's record in sports as shameful.

“Sports is one area where this government has performed poorly, abysmally, and has brought a lot of shame and embarrassment to the country. For the first time in twenty years, we failed to qualify for both the AFCON and the CHAN. When you compare this to the NDC’s tenure, during which we qualified for two World Cups in 2010 and 2014, it’s very worrying,” he said.

The Akufo-Addo government, in March 2024, successfully hosted the 2023 African Games, constructing a multi-purpose sports facility at Borteyman.

However, the allocation of $195 million for the event sparked public outrage, prompting the Public Accounts Committee to investigate the budget.

FKA/MA