The Director-General of the National Sports Authority (NSA), Yaw Ampofo Ankrah, has explained that the newly introduced pitch covers at the Accra Sports Stadium could be replicated across all major sports stadiums in Ghana if the current trial proves successful.
Speaking on Channel One Newsroom on Saturday, December 13, Ampofo Ankrah said the covers were introduced to protect the playing surface from damage caused by non-sporting events such as concerts, and festive celebrations, a problem that has historically forced the NSA to spend heavily on grass restoration.
Ampofo Ankrah emphasised that while the project is experimental, its success during this busy festive period could pave the way for implementation in all major stadiums nationwide.
According to the NSA Director-General, the partnership with private institutions, which provided the pitch covers, has been key to piloting innovative and cost-effective solutions for stadium management.
“In Ghana, the problem has been that we have not been able to protect our pitches and often when we are done with non-sporting events, the grass deteriorates to an extent where it is unusable and then we have to use all the money raised to go back into fixing the grass. This time, I will call it an experiment. We are looking at options.
“We had conversations with a number of cooperate private institutions and one of them gave the greenlight. It is a partnership where they brought in these pitch protectors for the NSA to use it during this Christmas period. It is an experiment, but we trust that it will work and if it does, we can use it at all our venues across the country,” he said.
