Ghana’s national women’s handball team has secured a sponsorship package from Suniel ahead of their participation in the IHF Trophy tournament in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, with the Handball Association of Ghana President, Nii Lante Bannerman, expressing optimism that the support will motivate the team to deliver a strong performance.
The sponsorship was announced during a media engagement organised by the Minifootball Association of Ghana and Suniel on Thursday, August 27, at the Ministry of Information, where Suniel was unveiled as an official partner of Ghana’s national teams. The company will provide kits for the women’s handball team as they prepare for their international assignment.
Bannerman credited the Director-General of the National Sports Authority, Yaw Ampofo Ankrah, for facilitating the partnership after he encountered the women’s handball team training at the stadium. “I would say that it all happened by the courtesy of the DG of the National Sports Authority. He happened to be there and saw the handball team training. We have a tournament in Ouagadougou, the IHF Nations Trophy 2026, featuring the female national team. He saw the girls training, passed by to see what was happening and was told what was happening, and he got Suniel to come and help with some kits. So that’s how it happened,” he said.
The Handball Association president described the sponsorship as a welcome development after years of limited support for the national teams. “We’ve been doing this for a while. In the last four years alone, we’ve attended about eight tournaments, which we’ve done well. We’ve got silver, we’ve got bronze, we’ve got gold in some of them. But in all this, nobody comes to our aid. So for the first time, the DG himself has come on and brought us a sponsorship deal. Not much to say about a kit deal, but for us, it’s a very good one. We appreciate it and we are very grateful,” Barnnerman stated.
He believes handball has the potential to become one of Ghana’s major medal-winning disciplines if the sport receives greater investment from the state and corporate institutions. “I’ve always said that handball has the potential of doing better than what football is doing for us because, given the chance, we can bring medals more than football is doing and even more than boxing would do,” he said.
Bannerman consequently appealed to the government and corporate Ghana to pay greater attention to less-financed sports and provide them with the resources needed to compete at the highest level. “I plead that the nation, as much as possible, takes a better look at handball, and not just handball, but there are some other disciplines that can do better given the least support. The nation and corporate Ghana should look at the least-financed sports and help them grow, especially handball. And I know once that is done, we’ll bring lorries to the nation,” he added.
Ahead of the IHF Trophy tournament, Bannerman is targeting gold from the women’s national team and believes the players have what it takes to qualify for the continental level. “I have some belief in this particular team to bring us gold so that we can qualify to the continental level. That’s the best I’m looking for and I know they can do it. They have the potential. What they need is motivation,” he said.
However, despite securing the kit sponsorship, the Association is still faced with logistical challenges, with Barnnerman revealing that the team is yet to secure a bus for the trip to Burkina Faso. “As I speak to you, we are even looking for a bus to take us to Ouagadougou. The national team is still looking for a bus to go to Ouagadougou. It should tell you what is happening. We are very poised, we are motivated, but we still believe that the nation can do more to help us,” he added.
By: Victoria Kwofie
