Time to sit up and do more – Herbert Mensah to world governing body

President of Rugby Africa, Herbert Mensah has called for more support from World Rugby to the sport in Africa because of the enormous potential for growth of the sport on the African continent.

He said this in an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera in the aftermath of his election as President of the sport’s body on the African continent.

Citing the growth of football and basketball in Africa via FIFA and the NBA respectively pumping millions of dollars into the ecosystem of either sport, Mensah called for something similar to be replicated in rugby.

“Other sports are looking at Africa differently…and we really need World Rugby to do the same. If we can convince them that a stronger Africa means stronger rugby; stronger rugby means more people watch the game, more people watch the game means more revenue comes in ultimately for the government bodies.

It’s a mindset. For us here in Africa and for the donors outside to really look and say we haven’t done enough and it’s time for us to sit up and do more”.

Ghana ranks 86th in the world rugby rankings as of January 2023.