The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has launched a policy aimed at discovering and developing the interest of young people in match officiation.
The “Catch Them Young” policy is designed to identify, educate and equip young talents who fall between the ages of 13 and 16 to officiate juvenile matches within their regions.
GFA President Kurt Okraku underscored the need for the policy, saying that when the talents are identified and nurtured early, they will pursue the career to the highest level and be able to complete with others across the globe.
“If we want good referees who can compete with the best in the world at male and female competitions, then it is important to identify and start training them at an early stage,” he said.
Mr Okraku made this known at the launch of the policy on Tuesday, 25 August 2020 in Accra.
He also noted that the policy would enhance the morals and integrity of young prospective referees and build their ambitions in refereeing.
The policy forms part of Mr Okraku’s vision and is captured in his “Game-Changing Manifesto”.
The GFA Referees Manager Alex Kotey revealed that a Centre for Refereeing Excellence (CORE) will be created at the Ghanaman Soccer Centre in Prampram, as well as an online-learning platform to support the education of referees at the grassroots level.