Accra, Aug. 19, GNA - The next screening exercise for the third edition of the 'Aspire Football Dreams' (AFD) begins on Saturday, August 29, 2009 across the country.

The exercise will see the organizers selecting youthful football talents from the ages of at least 13 years to join the renowned Qatari-based 'Aspire Football Academy'.

Capt. (Rtd) Andy Sam, Country Manager of the Project, who announced this at a media launch in Accra on Wednesday, said the selected players will be camped for the final selection exercise slated for the El-Wak Stadium, Accra on Saturday, September 19, 2009.

He explained that three players will be selected to represent the country at the globally acclaimed famous Aspire Academy in Qatar. Capt. Sam, who doubles as Founder of the Barborosa Foundation underscored the importance of the Project in the development of especially youth football in the country.

He said the Project has so far produced nine Ghanaian youngsters who have trained at the State-of-the-art facility in Doha, coupled with an enhanced educational programme.

The AFD Country Manager said the Project has provided great opportunity for football talents in some of the remotest part of the country. He acknowledged the untiring support of the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Ghana Football Association (GFA) towards the success of the Project.

Nii Nortey Dua, Deputy Minister of Youth Sports said the contribution of the Project to youth sports was a testimony of Government's call for private sector participation in sports development at the grassroots level.

He commended the organizers of the Project for their support in the establishment of a partnership between the GFA and their Qatari counterparts.

Kwesi Nyantakyi, GFA President pledged his outfit's "continuous and unrelenting efforts towards the success of the Project.