Ghana Football Association (GFA) President Kurt Okraku has appealed to the government to grant tax exemptions on equipment and apparel imported for the country’s national teams, describing the current arrangements as a financial burden on the association.Okraku said the GFA is compelled to pay import duties on supplies received through its technical partnership with PUMA, despite the items being intended for national team activities.Addressing Parliament’s Select Committee on Youth, Sports and Culture, he questioned why the association should incur additional costs to access equipment needed by the national teams.He cited instances where the GFA struggled to clear playing kits from the port because of financial constraints, revealing that the situation once threatened the Black Stars’ preparations for a match against South Africa in Cape Coast.”Sometimes, the FA is handicapped. We don’t have the finances. There are times when I’ll send the director of the national teams, who is here, to go to the port to remove 30 pieces of strips. I remember clearly that this happened when we played against South Africa in Cape Coast, just so that the Black Stars could wear their uniforms to play,” he said.”My question is simple: Why do we have to go through this stress? Is it not possible for national team apparel to be exempted from these kinds of taxes?” he added.The items supplied through the GFA’s technical partnerships include matchday and training jerseys, boots, training equipment and branding materials, all of which attract import duties.
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