The Ghana Football Association (GFA) held a one-day training workshop for Premier League Match Commissioners on Tuesday February 18, 2025, focusing on the newly enhanced Matchday Safety and Security Protocols.
The training aimed to equip Match Commissioners with the necessary skills and knowledge to ensure the smooth, safe, and secure conduct of football matches across the country.
The one-day workshop took place at the Conference Room of the Football Association.
General Secretary, Prosper Harrison Addo, welcomed the esteemed Commissioners to the GFA Headquarters at Ridge, Accra, and expressed his gratitude for their sacrifices and commitment to the growth of football in the country.
He shared insights into the revamped protocols to safeguard lives and property at the various match venues.
Director of Competitions, Julius Ben Emunah also took the participants through the various sections of the enhanced safety and security protocols.
Ghana Football Association President, Kurt Edwin Simeon-Okraku, assured the Match Commissioners that match officials will be protected while continuous efforts are made to educate the diverse patrons of our game.
"We occupy a special place in our sports. We play a very important role in the management of our game. The incidents that happened in Nsoatre has become a catalyst for us to re-look at how football has been delivered by all of us," President E.S Okraku told the Commissioners.
"I honestly believe that we have the power to right the wrongs in football. Again, like I said the last time I met you, I have absolute trust in the group that we have here. I know that we have the capacity to deliver football in the way it has to be delivered.
The President said the document, which mainly originated from the clubs, will be strictly adhered to.
"The incident at Nsoatre has pushed all of us. It has pushed our adrenaline levels to maybe two notches higher. The result is the enhanced match-day protocols that all of us are going through. What's most exciting for me is that this document is coming from the clubs, the main actors.
"It pre-supposes that they are committed to respecting the content enshrined in the document. However, it is our collective responsibility to help them to go by what is in the book. The FA is taking every word that you find in that document very seriously. And with your support, and hopefully with the support of all the clubs and all the active participants in football, we will implement this enhanced document to the last word.
"Of course, this is not the only governing document for our football. And we're going to rely on all available and approved documents to guide our football to where it’s supposed to be. Today we are here talking about security as part of the crucial need to ensure that we are able to deliver football and protecting match officials is high on the agenda for us."
The one-day event was also attended by Referees Appointment Committee chairperson, Christine Enyonam Zigah as well as a member of the GFA Safety and Security committee, Felix Bewu.
GFA Communications