Ghana begins revival of women's basketball with All-Girls Camps

ACCRA (Ghana) - Ten years after Ghana appeared at the 2011 FIBA Women's AfroBasket in Mali, courtesy of a wild card, Ghana Basketball Association (GGBA) is determined to revive women's basketball in the West African country.

In line with their determination to make concrete their decision, the GGBA recently held a one-day All-girls basketball clinic with Coach Madaleine Antwi (Maddy) at Aviation Social Centre, Accra on May 8, 2021.

A total of 60 girls turned out for the clinic which had coach Maddy from Canada on the ground to tutor the girls.

Maddy, a graduate in Human Kinetics based in Canada with a speciality in youth training for players aged 13-18 year-olds, stated that her concern for the girls is based on the fact that their place doesn't have to end at home washing dishes and other household chores.

"THE GOAL OF THIS CLINIC IS TO HELP THE GROWTH OF GIRLS' BASKETBALL, EMPOWERING THEM AND DRAWING THEIR ATTENTION TO THE GAME."- Coach Maddy

The camp also had former senior women players in attendance to inspire the girls as well as the Ghana Basketball Association head coach on ground where the girls were taught life skills, communication skills, agility, ball handling, defense and the rules of the game.

According to the Coach Mandy, the clinic is targeted at giving girls a chance to learn about the game and the opportunities therein. 

"WITH GHANA SET TO HOST THE AFRICA GAMES IN 2023, WE'RE DOING OUR BEST TO GROW OUR TEAMS."- Iddrisu

"I think girls don't believe they play sports here. All they do is go to school and return home believing that their job is to stay at home but I believe that they are more than just doing that and are capable of doing well too playing basketball," Mandy said.

"The goal of this clinic is to help the growth of girls’ basketball. Empowering females and drawing their attention to the game. The expectation of the clinic is that we all are working hard 24-7. You must learn to give 100 percent to the coaches all the time."

Aside from the one-day camp, the Ghana Basketball Association is not stopping at that and are having another camp with America's Imani McGee-Stafford who plays for the Perth Lynx in the Women’s National Basketball Association League (WNBA). Imani played College basketball for the University of Texas.

According to the Ghana Basketball Association Vice President Operations, Iddrisu Ayambire Gamel, the revival for Ghana women basketball is a deliberate one aimed at boosting their confidence.

"The GBBA is reviving women's basketball in Ghana and we're starting with the building of a U23 team down to the other age groups so as to create a base which when properly done will see the return of the Ghana women's basketball team to the big stage.

"With Ghana set to host the Africa Games in 2023, we're doing our best to grow our teams in regular basketball, 3x3 so as not to be caught napping."

The second camp is also focused on girls with due to start today at the same venue with Imani McGee-Stafford delving into furthering the girls’ chances of making a greater impact on the international stage. 20 girls selected from the first camp are participating.

FIBA