The 13th African Games are in full swing in Ghana, but the high cost of hosting the event amid an era of economic turmoil has brought scrutiny.
An outlay of almost $250m (£195.2m) has been committed to the multi-sport event, with the government’s opposition declaring it a “misplaced priority” for a nation heavily in debt, enduring high inflation and suffering effects of the regional cost of living crisis.
“I really don’t think we have our priorities right as a nation,” opposition MP Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa told BBC Sport Africa.
“We have been declared insolvent, bankrupt and downgraded by all government rating agencies, with junk status.
“This government has a penchant for big spending [on] things that really aren’t [a] priority.”
However, Ghana’s president Nana Akufo-Addo says the legacy of hosting the Games will far outweigh the economic problems facing the country.
“It took a lot of courage to stick with the decision to host the Games and I am happy we went ahead,” President Akufo-Addo said at the opening ceremony in Accra last Friday.
“We can be proud of the huge sporting infrastructure we have built for the Games, which would be a huge legacy for our country.”
The Games were originally scheduled to take place in August last year, but were rescheduled for this month due to a dispute over marketing rights that delayed the completion of the facilities.
However, the event, which features more than 5,000 athletes and officials from across the continent competing in 29 disciplines, did not get off to the most auspicious start.
There were four power outages in the first three days of the games, including Ghana’s women’s soccer opener against Ethiopia at Cape Coast Stadium and a blackout at the athletes’ village.
The first beach volleyball match was delayed by 35 minutes as nets were not installed and it was reported that the Ghana cycling team needed to buy new bikes.