Adebayo To Tour Ghana To Help Youth

Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor will embark on a tour of Ghana later this month as part of his efforts to give hope to the youth in the west African country. The 24-year-old has been Africa’s top player in Europe this season thanks to his exploits in the English Premier League and the Uefa Champions League. His trip to Ghana will include a visit to the King of the Ashantis, Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II to support an educational fund for needy students in the country. Adebayor’s three-nation tour this summer includes trips to his native Togo and Nigeria, the country of birth of his parents, to support charity projects and exhibition matches for kids. The trip is in fulfillment of the promise he was awarded the 2007 BBC African Player of the Year earlier this year. I plan with the BBC African Player of the Year award to become an agent of hope and positive change in the lives of the millions of African youths who have lost hope and are deprived, Adebayor said. Winning is good but is better when it becomes a means of hope and positive change in the lives of those who are deprived. As a footballer I know I am a role model for a lot of African kids and I want to make a direct impact on their lifes. Economic deprivation has created millions of orphans and street children on the continent and I have chosen to start with these three countries with more planned for the future. These children are the potential leaders of tomorrow and should be accorded all the necessary attention, guidance and assistance to empower them to fulfill their full potential as productive citizen of African. The Arsenal striker will receive the BBC African Player of the Year trophy in a ceremony in Lome at the end of the month before embarking on the ‘Trip of Hope’. He will also play in Jay Jay Okocha’s testimonial game scheduled for Warri during the period.