By: Dawda Baldeh
Mamour Mbenga alias Kifa Barham, the Chief Executive Officer of Africa Citizen Radio and President of Dolphin Stars Football Club, has finished in second position in a six-month Football Business and HR from the University of Valley View (VVU) Accra, Ghana in partnership with Linked Sport Business College.
Kifa as widely known, left for Ghana in March to attend his program as the only student from the Gambia in the mix of different students from other West African nations.
The course program is an advanced foundation level aimed to equip the graduates with the understanding and knowledge needed for sports marketing, branding, administration, communication among others.
Speaking to this medium, Kifa said he was excited to be the only Gambian student in the middle of other “World Football Icons” as he came second in the course.
The young football administrator said he intends to give back to the country and work effectively with all stakeholders in the sporting industry especially the football industry.
The course also offers the participants the opportunity to work with athletes, clubs and sporting bodies as well as set professional standards for the participants to coordinate the operation and activities of sporting bodies.
“This will create specialised knowledge and the skillset to manage football business activities and understanding of the wider football industry and stakeholders involved. Sports, in general, has a huge economic benefit for contributors and stakeholders,” he explained.
He added, “my goals and passion are to give back to my country. To share the skillset in order to professionalize our football industry and create the parachute avenue for our athletes to benefit and participate in the international football arena.”
Mr. Mbenga also noted that he will continue to support implemented projects, especially at the grassroot level, conduct trainings in the following professional areas and create room for improvement for clubs and athletes’ careers, he reiterated.
The course modules include Sports First Aid, Sports Finance, Children Save Guarding, Laws of the Game, Sports Administration, Contract Negotiation, Branding and Marketing Segmentation among other areas.
Kifa, the CEO of Dolphin Stars, is currently part of a group of young potential sports stakeholders within the continent. A newly established project named Africa Sports Agency (ASA) is established to support and Promote African football to the wider world through organizing trainings, development programs for athletes and marketing platforms through digital media networks.
He described himself as “an agent of change”, adding that he is willing to work with everyone for the development of the country.
“Thanks, I was even the only Gambian in the course program out of 26 students from different countries. I was scared cause I shared a class with sports icons and people with strong sporting backgrounds but as we know Gambians are blessed.”
Valley View University is ranked 7th out of 70 universities and colleges in Ghana.
Mbenga took second position out of 26 participants from eleven countries.
