Ghana FA says FIFA Relief Fund meant to bring football back

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Accra, July 20 (IANS) The Ghana Football Association (GFA) said the FIFA and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) COVID-19 relief fund to be disbursed to member associations is meant to bring football back.

General Secretary for the GFA, Prosper Harrison Addo, said the association will disburse the money to stakeholders in accordance with directives by the world football governing body, reports Xinhua news agency.

The call comes at the back of the controversy that has come up since FIFA and CAF announced to disburse relief funds to member associations to cushion them due to the negative impact of COVID-19.

While some club owners say the money is not enough and should be disbursed to them only, others see no justification in allocating a percentage of the relief fund to other entities with the football fraternity.

"The FIFA relief fund is not meant only to alleviate the plight of stakeholders, but to bring football back. The money hasn't come yet but there will be modalities as to how it should be disbursed. There are steps to follow and we must work to comply with the FIFA directives," Addo told local media in Ghana.

He called for restraint among football stakeholders and assured the FA will work to promote the interests of all stakeholders.

FIFA and CAF recently announced to disburse a total amount of 1.8 million US dollars to members.

The total amount is an amalgamation of the one million USD in FIFA COVID-19 relief fund, the 500,000 USD for FIFA women's football relief fund, and 300,000 USD from the CAF relief fund.

According to FIFA, the first tranche of the relief fund will be paid in July 2020, while the final one will be paid in January next year.

--IANS

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