As part of the award 25 nominees each from 15 African countries have been nominated.

The countries include Ghana, Nigeria, Congo, South Africa, Libya, Sudan, Tunisia, Zimbabwe, Morocco, Kenya, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Egypt, and Algeria.

The lists include footballers, Artists, Financial companies, Media organizations, journalists, comedians, movie stars and many more selected from these African countries.

Notable among the nominees are Ghana’s Black stars Captain Asamoah Gyan, iconic actress Jackie Appiah, Ivorain football legend Dedier Drogba. Music hit maker Yemi Aladi was not left out as well as Nigerian comedian I Go Die.

Speaking at a ceremony to outdoor the nominees, the Executive Director of Musicians Educational Consult, Emmanuel Addo was optimistic that the initiative will grow to become African Gammy Awards.

He further encouraged the general public to vote massively for their preferred candidates to enable them win in the respective categories.

He added that, patrons can visit theafricaprestigeousawards.com to enable them vote for their favorite nominees.

Below is the full list of nominees and countries.

THE AFRICAN PRESTIGIOUS AWARDS

COUNTRY: GHANA

NOMINEE LIST

THE AFRICAN PRESTIGIOUS AWARDS

COUNTRY: ALGERIA

NOMINEE LIST

THE AFRICAN PRESTIGIOUS AWARDS

COUNTRY: CONGO

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY: EGYPT

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY: ETHIOPIA

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY: IVORY COAST

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY: KENYA

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY: LIBYA

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY: MOROCCO

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY: NIGERIA

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY: SOUTH AFRICA

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY:SUDAN

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY: TUNISIA

NOMINEE LIST

COUNTRY: ZIMBABEWE

NOMINEE LIST

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Anass S. Seidu/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The Black Stars last tasted glory in the continent’s football showpiece in 1982 when they defeated host nation Libya 7-6 on penalties.

Since then, Ghana has made the final on three occasions but have failed to add to their four trophy haul, with the latest finals being the 9-8 penalty shoot out loss to the Elephants of Ivory Coast in 2015.

Badu, who has lined up alongside Gyan on several occasions, urged the Shanghai SIPG striker, who recently scored his 50th goal for Ghana to win the coveted trophy for the country before calling it a day on his illustrious career.

“Gyan has been a wonderful leader, he is great and has done a lot for the national team,” Badu said on GHone.

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“Sometimes it can take until someone has finished their career to be fully appreciated.”

This view was expressed by Michael Carrick earlier this year when he called for Wayne Rooney to be given more respect for his achievements at Manchester United.

He might as well been talking about Asamoah Gyan – a perfect example of a player whose contributions are chronically undervalued.

On Sunday the 31-year-old forward became the first player to score 50 goals for the Black Stars.

Gyan was on target as Ghana began their 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign with a 5-0 victory over Ethiopia in Kumasi.

Half-a-century of international goals is a terrific stat in anyone’s book and only five Africans have hit that milestone for their countries.

Gyan is now a full member of an exclusive club that includes Zambian legend Godfrey Chitalu, Egyptian great Hossam Hassan, Ivory Coast icon Didier Drogba and Cameroon goal machine Samuel Eto’o.

He is also Africa’s all-time top scorer at the Fifa World Cup with six goals.

To put his accomplishments into context, Ghana’s most revered footballer Abedi Pele Ayew, who played in five Africa Cup of Nations tournaments, retired from international football with 33 goals in 67 appearances.

At the age of 31 and in the twilight of his career, Gyan remains as indispensable as ever but also bafflingly under-appreciated.

He has long been overlooked in conversations about the continent’s best forwards but his ability to hit the back of the net from almost anywhere on the pitch has made life miserable for defenders and goalkeepers over the years.

He has scored a few look-at-me goals but his Black Stars goal portfolio also includes simple tap-ins, headers and free-kicks.

Yet, there are many in Ghana who salivate at any opportunity to pounce on a man who made his international debut in 2003, aged 17, and scored against Somalia.

Throughout his career, Gyan has never been far from criticism and abuse from his own fans and, incredibly, some of his critics claim that missed penalties at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations damaged his legacy beyond repair.

When Gyan left English Premier League side Sunderland for a lucrative deal with Abu Dhabi’s Al Ain in 2012, he was pilloried for “taking the easy option” and some predicted the end of his career.

Now playing for Al-Ahli Dubai FC, Gyan has proved the doubters wrong by showing the kind of consistency in front of goal that most could only dream of.

He has been nothing short of prolific for the four-time African champions and deserves much more respect than people give him.

It is often the case with most underrated players that one does not realise just how important they are until they are gone.

Enjoy watching Asamoah Gyan while you can.

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Former Sunderland striker Asamoah Gyan is among a group of more than 40 players deemed to have “unethical hair” under United Arab Emirates Football Association (UAEFA) guidelines.

The 31-year-old Ghanaian is on loan at Dubai-based Arabian Gulf League side Al Ahli from Shanghai SIPG.

In 2012, Saudi Arabia goalkeeper Waleed Abdullah was told to cut his “un-Islamic” hair by the referee before playing for his club side Al Shabab.

The Saudi rule bans mohawk-style cuts.

Some Islamic teachings ban ‘Qaza’ hairstyles, which include mohawks, because only part of the head is shaved, leaving other parts unshaven.

Individual match referees judge whether players’ haircuts are appropriate, with some in United Arab Emirates concerned about children copying the styles.

The UAEFA send a player’s club a warning letter in the first instance, with punishments escalating to a fine and then a suspension if he does not comply.

Gyan is one of 46 players at the warning letter stage.

According to Middle Eastern football website Ahdaaf, Al Wahda’s Suhail Al-Mansoori (pictured below) was told to cut his hair while UAE international and 2016 Asian footballer of the year Omar Abdulrahman, who sports a similar style and also plays in the Arabian Gulf League, was let off.

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Source: BBC

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