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Pampered bunch in national colours
News that players of the senior national team, Black Stars, were given US$20,000 each as appearance fee at the just-ended African Cup of Nations (AFCON) continues to ruffle a few feathers.
The Stars were bowled out of the AFCON held in Cameroon, finishing last in Group C with a point. That Ghana lost to minnows Comoros 2-3 in a game they had to win and qualify for the last-16 stage, irritated long-suffering Ghanaians fans the more.
Ghana was expected to break the trophy drought in Cameroon, having gone without the continental coronet since the glory of 1982 in Libya. But a couple of shambolic performances ensured that the Stars produced the nation’s worst output in AFCON history. It was painful and harrowing.
But as Ghanaians were brooding over the ignominious loss, emerge the worrying news that even in their mess; the Stars received US$20,000 each for their presence at the tournament. Such amount splashed on the players and officials for appearing in an AFCON tournament? This is crazy! It is even crazier to think that they did not only come home empty-handed, but with their heads down in chagrin.
Questions are being asked here and there; how was such amount splattered on the Stars when even winners of the tournament – Senegal’s Teranga Lions, walked away with financial rewards and plots of land for their stupendous efforts.
“As testament to our gratitude, and in the name of the nation, the players and other members of the official delegation will each receive a special bonus of 50,000,000 CFA ($87,178), and a 200-square metre plot of land in Dakar,” Senegal Head of State Macky Sall said, in his official address to the players.
“They will each also receive a 500-square metre plot of land in the first district of the new city of Diamniadio (30km from the capital).”
Senegal defeated Egypt 4-2 on penalties following a 0-0 draw at the Stade d’Olembe in Yaounde to finally get their hands on the AFCON title after two previous failed attempts in the final.
As someone jokingly said, we would have built skyscrapers for the Ghana players plus a GH¢1m each had they annexed the crown. We have made money the epicentre of everything to the extent that the players do not even see the need to ‘kill themselves’ for the result, aware that irrespective of the upshot, they would still swagger all the way to the bank. That should not be the case.
What at all are we doing to our national team? What kind of seed are we sowing? Are we probably not reaping from the seed we have sown in the past?
The other time (AFCON 2015), we gave players 30 grand Jeep Cherokee vehicles to the Blacks Stars and the management team for placing second, after losing to Cote d’Ivoire during the lottery of penalty shoot-out.
The vehicles – and US$25,000 each, we understood, formed part of the reward Government promised the senior national team for their ‘do well’ performance at the tournament in Equatorial Guinea.
Each Cherokee vehicle cost $76,000 ($2,280,000) and were supplied by Tannick Automobile, a company located on the Tema motorway. We are told there was no government involvement. But does it really matter? It is still our worship of such run-of-the-mill, garden-variety results.
You see the level of mediocrity in the Black Stars? What would they have offered the team if they had conquered Africa? This is simply unfathomable, to say the least!
By now, our authorities should know that such pampering of the national team players has the propensity to irk the public who want to see some real fight and hard work from them on the pitch. We have got to be very careful not to court further disaffection for the team as we plan to build a more formidable and winsome Black Stars in the years ahead.
PlainTalk with John Vigah
The Global Network of Export-Import Banks and Development Finance Institutions (G-NEXID) successfully held its sixth (6th) Exchange Programme, hosted by the Ghana Export – Import Bank (GEXIM) Bank in Accra from March 22 to 23 March.
The event brought together member institutions, partner organisations and Ghanaian public entities to advance dialogue on South-South trade, investment and development finance, while also creating opportunities for knowledge-sharing and institutional cooperation.
Organised as a capacity-building and networking platform, the 2026 edition of the G-NEXID Exchange focused on GEXIM’s experience in developing innovative solutions to promote intra-African and extra-African trade.
It also highlighted trade and investment opportunities in Ghana, particularly in the context of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and broader national development initiatives.
The Exchange Programme forms part of G-NEXID’s mandate to foster cooperation among export-import banks and development finance institutions in support of South-South trade and investment.
This 6th edition follows earlier successful programmes hosted by India Exim Bank (2016), BNDES (2017), Indonesia Eximbank (2018), Afreximbank (2019) and Saudi EXIM Bank (2025).
On the first day, participants were presented with G-NEXID institutional information and received an update on the Network’s 2026 work programme.
There were a series of substantive presentations, including an overview of the Ghanaian economy by the Ministry of Finance, with particular attention to debt-related challenges; a presentation by the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), on investment opportunities in the country; and institutional presentations by GEXIM and Development Bank Ghana (DBG) on their respective mandates, initiatives, products and services.
Discussions during the sessions underscored strong interest in sector-focused webinars and business dialogues, particularly in agribusiness value chains such as poultry and rice.
Participants also emphasized the importance of continued information exchange and the sharing of best practices, especially in the area of guarantees.
The second day opened with a presentation on the 24-Hour Economy and Accelerated Export Development Programme, a national economic transformation strategy launched by President John Dramani Mahama in July 2025.
The initiative aims to enhance economic productivity through continuous industrial activity, accelerated export development and strategic import substitution.
As the programme is expected to mobilise both private and development capital, it presents concrete opportunities for G-NEXID members in areas such as co-financing, guarantees, trade finance and technical cooperation.
The programme also featured institutional presentations by guest organisations, namely the African Guarantee and Economic Cooperation Fund (FAGACE) and the West African Development Bank (BOAD), which shared their mandates, initiatives, products and services.
Following these exchanges, the G-NEXID Secretariat held bilateral discussions with both institutions as part of the Network’s ongoing membership drive.
Participants further benefited from a presentation by the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB), as well as a showcase of GEXIM’s key pipeline projects.
On the margins of the Exchange Programme, G-NEXID members also held their 20th Annual General Assembly Meeting to review progress and discuss strategic priorities.
Following the event, participants joined the GEXIM@10 International Conference, held from March 24-25, 2026 under the theme, “A Decade of Enabling Export Trade and Industrial Transformation: Resetting GEXIM for the Next Frontier.”
The conference provided an important platform for exploring how Ghana can strengthen its transition from a primary commodity exporter to a more competitive player in value-added trade and industrial development.
Source – G-NEXID
President John Dramani Mahama on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, signed five bills including three amendment bills passed by Parliament into law.
They are: Security and Intelligence Agencies Bill, 2025; University of Engineering and Agricultural Sciences Bill, 2025; Ghana Deposit Protection (Amendment) Bill, 2025; Growth and Sustainability Levy (Amendment) Bill, 2026; and Education Regulatory Bodies (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
In a brief remark after assenting to the bills, President Mahama explained that the Security and Intelligence Agencies Act, 2026, scraps the Office of Minister of National Security and frees the President’s to appoint any Minister to supervise the security agencies.
He said it also reverses the name of the office of National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), to the original name, Bureau of National Intelligence, (BNI).
This the President said, addresses the confusion between that security agency and a well-known Ghanaian financial institution, the National Investment Bank.
President Mahama also noted that the University of Engineering and Agricultural Sciences Act, 2026, establishes another University in the Eastern Region, at Bonsu, with three campuses – the main campus at Bonsu in the Eastern Region, with the second campus to be cited at Ohawu in the Oti Region.
The third, the Presdient assed will be located at Acherensua in the Ahafo Region.
Touching on the Amendment to the Growth and Sustainability Levy Act, the President said, “As you’re aware, the act was amended to increase it from 1% to 3%, and so this act reduces it again. That is the levy on mining companies. It reduces it again to 1%, because of the introduction of the sliding scale of royalties.”
He also spoke to the passage of the Government Education Regulatory Bodies Amendment Act, emphasising that amends Act 1023 to grant greater flexibility to private tertiary institutions and the option to Charter.
The Ghana Deposit Protection Amendment Act, the President concluded, is an amendment to an original act that was supposed to guarantee deposits held in commercial banks or financial institutions.
It basically expands protection to include mobile money wallets and other digital platforms, ensuring a wider scope of digital financial assets are secured.
The signing ceremony, was witnessed by the Clerk of Parliament, Mr. Ebenezer Ahumah Djietror, Secretary to the President, Dr Callistus Mahama, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Dr Dominic Akrutinga Ayine, Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, Joyce Bawa Mogtari, a Senior Presidential Advisor and a Special Aide to the President, Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, and the Vice President, Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang.
