admin
Ngqwele Dube, Sports Correspondent
THE newly elected Zifa Southern Region executive will be drafting a strategic plan for the next four years as they seek to revamp football in the region.
Chairman, Andrew Tapela said he wants to ensure members of the committee are on the same page going forward hence they would be meeting to align their ideas and implement them.
“We are hitting the ground running as we have already assigned executive committee member, Sifiso Siziba to handle the competitions portfolio and ensure the league comes to a smooth finish while also looking at outstanding cup competitions that are still to be held.
“We are meeting on Saturday (yesterday) to begin the preliminary work that includes allocation of portfolios to the various committee members. The meeting will also present us with an opportunity to come up with a draft strategic plan which we will refine then present to our stakeholders for adoption,” he said.
There are four portfolios that include competitions, finance, development and administration and these will be allocated to the four board members.
Tapela said they are already on a familiarisation programme as they engage stakeholders, mainly clubs, in order to come up with a comprehensive four-year plan that will make positive gains in the region.
He said after the weekend meeting they will be spelling out a communications policy to ensure harmony and ease of information exchanges between his board and stakeholders.
Tapela beat Musa Mandaza by 20 to seven votes during last week’s elections where Siziba, Tizirayi Luphahla, Mehluli Thebe, Bryton Malandule made it into the executive committee and Gaylord Madhunguza retained the vice-chairman’s post uncontested.
The former Highlanders secretary set out an ambitious manifesto in which he outlined his plans to improve the region’s resource mobilisation capacity, employ synergies and partnerships, capacity building programmes and come up with infrastructure development plans once elected.
He promised a branded league with a full sponsorship package that will incentivise all teams to fight for a better position and not just for the championship, which comes with a ticket to the Premiership.
Tapela also said they are looking at creating linkages that will bring financial gain to clubs as his administration seeks twinning arrangements with leagues of similar standing in neighbouring countries.
He said Division One teams can gain more from their player development efforts through widening the pool for the players to other countries instead of looking to send their products to the Premiership only.
Tapela said during his tenure there would be widespread capacity building for both coaches and administrators alike including setting up a training fund to subsidise courses while at the same time roping in Naph and Nash to ensure the development agenda spreads to schools which are critical in talent development.
Meanwhile, Zifa has said all lower leagues now fall under regional leadership, including Area Zones, Naph, Nash, Beach Soccer, among others. There are now four regional chairmen countrywide for Area Zones, who then have provincial chairmen running Area Zones.
“What we call Bafa now falls under Area Zones and the Southern Region chairman is Ndodana Masuku based in Matabeleland North. Elections were done for Area Zones long back. The provincial chairman for Bulawayo is Charles Chunda. That is the leadership of Area Zones and Bafa does not have a seperate executive or chairman because it falls under Area Zones. Even social soccer leagues must regularise themselves and register under Area Zones. Area Zones fall under the main Southern Region leadership which means Tapela has an oversight role for the Southern Region, and the set up is the same countrywide,” said Zifa vice-president Omega Sibanda.
Online Reporter