Against all odds: Pra babies hoping to make it through adversity
- Francis Hema / Media General (TV3)
Atweneboandah, a small community in the Western region of Ghana is surrounded by huge farmlands and the Pra River. Due to its nature, the locals have taken to farming and fishing but there is more than meets the eye. The children of Atweneboandah have found something to hold onto, something that gives them pure joy; football. A native of the town, Roland Fiifi Ackon has set up a football club which gives about 90% of the young boys a career. Pra Babies has been in existence since 2011 and despite the challenges that comes with it, the young players have found a way to combine the hard task of farming and fishing to playing football. It is their first love and they would fight for it. Day after day, the kids brave through the mighty Pra River to reach their destination- one that will see one of them play in one of the biggest stadiums in the world and make headlines. They have embraced the challenges in order to achieve their dreams to be recognized as world stars, it might be difficult but there is definitely light at the end of the tunnel. After the airing of the story, Black Stars winger, Samuel Owusu reached out to them and adopted one of the kids, Papa Kobina Annan, and sent him to his residence in Ghana's capital, Accra. Papa Kobina Annan is now playing football and schooling in Accra.