President Nana Akufo Addo has officially opened the multipurpose Borteyman Sports complex.

The opening is to signal Ghana’s readiness to host its first-ever All Africa Games showcase since independence,

The occasion will also mark the beginning of the 25-day countdown to the continent’s largest multidisciplinary sporting competition, which will take place at the University of Ghana’s newly built facilities the Borteyman Sports Facilities and a host of other centers including the Accra Sports Stadium.

The President said that the decision to adopt a hybrid method of hosting the event has paid off, as the facilities at the University of Ghana and in Borteyman are prepared to host the 13th edition of the Games.

Following the unexpected impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the nation’s infrastructure development plans and general preparations, Ghana has shown commitment and resilience despite preparations that were largely marked by challenges and uncertainties.

During the short but magnificent commissioning ceremony, President Akufo-Addo stated, “When all hope appeared lost, we came up with a brilliant idea of adopting a hybrid approach to hosting the Games, that is, utilizing facilities at the University of Ghana, which were under construction, as well as selected facilities we could develop on time, here in Borteyman.”

There will be thousands of spectators in the nation, 3,000 seasoned officials, 5,000 elite athletes, and an estimated 2.2 billion viewers worldwide across traditional and social media platforms during the games.

Ghana has never hosted the African Games in its fifty-seven years of existence, despite being a founding member of the organization under the direction of its first leader, Kwame Nkrumah.

In response, Akufo-Addo declared, “This is our time. There is a time for everything.” Here in Ghana, we are now prepared and able to host and organize the remainder of the continent. For the first time in our history, the people and government of Ghana are honored and appreciative of the Africa Union for giving us the chance to host the rest of Africa.

He stated that, “the construction of these magnificent, multi-purpose facilities at Borteyman and the University of Ghana for the African Games, clearly demonstrate the Akufo-Addo Government’s commitment to the development of much-needed sports infrastructure in Ghana.”

“Over the last seven years, my government has renovated the Accra Sports Stadium, Cape Coast Sports Stadium and the Baba Yara Sports Stadium in Kumasi. In addition to this, Government has built ten sports stadia in the ten original regions of our country. Six of these stadia, namely Wa in Upper West, Dunkwa on Offin in Central, Axim in Western, Dormaa Ahenkro in Bono, Ho in Volta and Koforidua in Eastern, are ready, with the Koforidua Sports Stadium having been commissioned by me. The remaining four are expected to be completed this year.”