admin
Veronica Gwaze Sports Reporter
YVONNE Mapika Manwa can best be described as a walking enigma.
For someone who holds one of the most powerful offices in football, very little is known about her and where she came from.
She burst onto the spotlight in May 2022 when she was appointed Ngezi Platinum Stars chief executive officer, a position she held for more than a year before resigning.
Manwa is now the Zimbabwe Football Association CEO after she was appointed in November last year.
Interestingly, the reserved Manwa is someone who prefers to stay under a shroud and let people speculate about her.
Not even a Zimpapers Sports Hub conversation could make her dig into her background.
Yet for her contribution to the Sports fraternity, she is one of the women worth acknowledging as the world continues to celebrate Women’s Month.
“Yvonne is a passionate and dynamic sports administrator driven by innovative ideas and a relentless mission to revolutionise Zimbabwean football for the betterment of players and fans alike,” Manwa, described herself.
Manwa’s role as the football boss is to lead the Zimbabwe Football Association into its next phase under the Normalisation Committee. The seat had not been occupied for over two years since the departure of Joseph Mamutse, who was initially suspended by the SRC in 2021.
“At Ngezi, I went through a rigorous interview process out of which I was appointed,” she said.
“They were looking for an administrator to come in and assist in putting up systems and structures to consolidate their status as one of Zimbabwe’s premier league clubs.
“I went through a similar process at ZIFA, I did the interviews and satisfied them hence the appointment.”
Since she arrived at the helm of football, Manwa, who was thrown into an office haunted by a lot of issues, has been busy.
Currently, she is spearheading a forensic audit which is one of the ways outlined to restore order at the football association.
“We are in the throes of completing a forensic audit — remember we were lagging by three years when the NC assumed office.
“The end goal is to restore order in the association and we are almost done.”
The football boss is also fronting the agenda for developing soccer at the grassroots level.
Last week, the association launched the FIFA Football for Schools Programme to pave the way for the development of the sport.
“We are also in the process of setting up administrative systems and structures that will see the association adhere to the standards of global best practice now and for years to come,” she said.
Ordinarily, with such a workload Manwa would have been expected to find it hard to strike a balance between her office and home.
However, the passionate sports administrator balances both worlds with ease.
“Career is important, but my family even more,” added the CEO.
“The key for me has been in investing time and effort into both and making sure that I meet my responsibilities both at home and in the office. “I am passionate about both worlds and this has made life easy for me because even at the office, I do not feel like I am working.”
However, being a woman in sports, especially in football, she acknowledges is not a walk in the park.
She said the job comes with its challenges and that passion has seen her rise above the challenges, including stigma.
“You will find that there are now several women who are not only working in football but occupying high offices,” she said.
“We have won acceptance through competence, dedication, integrity, and the passion we have for Zimbabwe football.
“I love challenges which is why I was not hesitant to take up the ZIFA job.
“Where I feel I can make a meaningful contribution, I go and for our football to develop, we have to roll up our sleeves, all hands on deck, get dirty if need be, rise to clean up the mess, and move our game forward.”
Added Manwa: “Perhaps under the previous administration things were different but with the Normalisation Committee, they are geared to making a positive impact on our game and its administration.
Online Reporter