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No easy road to Qatar 2022
In less than two months, Ghana’s Black Stars will restart the second phase of its potentially engaging journey to the Qatar 2022 World Cup, after effortlessly strolling through the preliminaries.
It would be the Stars’ fourth appearance at the global stage, if they are able to pluck a ticket from the tricky-thistle qualifiers that also have a final third round to deal with.
Clearly, qualification will only become a possibility with lots of hard work, commitment, dedication, unity of purpose and valour.
This penultimate round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifications begins in June 2021 across the continent.
Ghana is placed in Group G alongside South Africa, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia and will necessarily have to keep their nose to the grindstone to finish top of the group.
The Stars will start the campaign at home against Ethiopia and finish off the qualifiers in front of their pet crowd with South Africa in October 2021.
According to the schedule as released by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), at the end of this phase, the group toppers of the 10 groups meet for yet another elimination phase between November 8 and 16, 2021.
Ghana’s last World Cup appearance was in Brazil 2014. And, it was a calamitous campaign as it ended in a first round shocking exit, though Asamoah Gyan netted twice in the tournament to become Africa’s top scorer at the Mundial.
Eleven years ago, it ended in a stunningly blissful quarter final berth in a South African tournament that shook the world.
Ghanaians have been looking forward again to drinking from that unforgettably sweet pot of football that clobbered the world into a trance, but that should be possible if we do not underestimate the strength of South Africa, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe in the campaign.
Only a fortnight or so ago, Ghana plucked four points off South Africa’s Bafana Bafana in their two meetings of the Cameroon 2021 qualifiers. Evidently, upshot of the games hugely contributed to the elimination of the South Africans from the biennial tournament, and they would come with all guns blazing in the World Cup qualifiers.
As for Zimbabwe and Ethiopia, they may not be a towering force to reckon with but the duo can become a thorn in the flesh and serve as a banana peel to our quest to make it to our fourth Mundial. Both teams have booked tickets to the next AFCON.
At the 2006 African Cup of Nations, the Zimbabwean Warriors displayed real polished football to edge out the Black Stars 2-1 in a Group D clash at the Ismailia Stadium, Egypt.
The Stars, who were then bound for the Germany 2006 World Cup, conceded an own goal through defender Issah Ahmed a minute before the hour mark with Benjamin ‘Benjani’ Mwaruwari doubling the advantage 10 minutes later. Baba Adamu pulled one back in the final seconds of the evening but that spangling effort was a little too late.
The result of the night left Ghana crumbling out of the tournament at the group stage. A draw or win would have sent the Stars through.
Just like Zimbabwe, Ethiopia cannot be taken for granted, having made it to the Cameroon AFCON after eight years in the ‘wilderness.’
With a type of football that oozes out pretty patterns on the pitch, Ethiopia can be a viciously dangerous unit when not properly caged.
Much as it is important to focus on the impending AFCON that is expected to be held in January, we must also keep an eye on the World Cup qualifiers and make it count.
The key word here is focus; we must keep an eye on the ball.
Remember, we ought to make it to Qatar 2022 at all cost, and go right the wrongs of that ‘forget-me-quick tournament of shame!
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.
