FIFA Director Member Associations Africa Gelson Fernandes has toured the Ghanaman Centre of Excellence at Prampram to acquaint himself with work done so far and projects that have been earmarked towards the development of the Centre to a world class standard.
The Ghanaman Centre of Excellence was fully funded with proceeds from the FIFA Goal Project as Technical Centre of the Ghana Football Association. The facility houses all national teams of the GFA apart from the Black Stars and also serves as training centre for Referees, Coaches and Administrators.
While in Ghana, Fernandes held discussions with President Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku, Youth and Sports Minister Mustapha Ussif (Hon.) and the Parliamentary Select Committee on Youth, Sports and Culture.
Fernandes, President Simeon-Okraku and the Sports Minister discussed the state of Ghana football and the role of government to reenergize football development in the country and noted that it will take a lot of energy and investment to take Ghana football to the levels required.
The former Swiss international midfielder was in Ghana to check on progress made so far since the Normalization era, have an overview of the football eco-system and discuss plans and programs that are needed to develop football in Ghana.
Gelson Fernandes also held discussions with the Technical Directorate of the GFA led by Bernhard Lippert and the National teams department led by Deputy General Secretary Alex Asante.
Fernandes took up the role of Director Member Associations Africa on August 1, 2022 with responsibility for overseeing services to strengthen the development of the African Member Associations through the Forward Programme. He grew up in Switzerland and developed his footballing skills at FC Sion, where he previously held the position of Vice-President.
Gelson Fernandes played for FC Sion, Manchester City, and Leicester City, Stade Rennes, Sporting Lisbon and several other European clubs before hanging his boots in 2018.
