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Goal dreams: conflicting development imaginaries in Ghanaian football academies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 July 2019

Itamar Dubinsky  and
Lynn Schler
Itamar Dubinsky*
Affiliation:
Oregon State University, Corvallis OR, USA
Lynn Schler*
Affiliation:
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel
*
Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Focusing on three Ghanaian football academies, this article examines the role that dreams and aspirations play in shaping development schemes and in determining their impact. Football ignites the hopes and imaginations of entrepreneurs, aspiring players, their parents and supporters, and these aspirations serve as a blueprint for action both among founders and participants of academies. Imagined futures give birth to development initiatives, attracting participants, and providing them with opportunities to articulate their own aspirations. The following examination argues that it is vital for researchers and practitioners to understand how a variety of imagined futures comes into play in development schemes, as the conflicts and negotiations between divergent imaginaries can explain why individuals engage with development, how schemes evolve and how they leave their mark upon communities.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Modern African Studies , Volume 57 , Issue 2 , June 2019 , pp. 247 - 272
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019 

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Footnotes

The authors are grateful for funding received for this research from the Tamar Golan Africa Centre at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. We are greatly indebted to the interviewees in Ghana who willingly contributed their time and shared their experiences and insights. We also extend our appreciation for the thoughtful insights of two anonymous reviewers and the editors of The Journal of Modern African Studies.

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INTERVIEWS

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