adminsatisfied that proper development, starting from the grassroots, was being implemented.
The Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture have already pledged to do more for sport but said they will not simply accept requests from the mother body to play international matches without adequate preparations and continue to embarrass the nation.
These remarks were made by the Principal Director of the parent ministry, Paul Damasane, at the official opening of the Women’s Football Com Unity Seminar which started in the capital yesterday.
The three-day seminar seeks to bring more awareness of the sport to the stakeholders and the community.
Damasane said there was need for the national teams to have adequate preparations starting from grassroots and not become tournament teams.
“The Government will support but on our conditions. Development and preparedness take precedence over just fulfilling a tournament.
“We are not just going there to spend the taxpayers money and come back with nothing to show. We are not going to accept Zifa requests, when there are no preparations, to sponsor a team to a tournament,” said Damasane.
Damasane also called for viable leagues from grassroots that will see schools playing football throughout the year.
“We need to change on our school calendar so that sport is engaged right throughout the year and not only in second term where ball games are engaged but teams will practise from February to December, not periodically or seasonally
“We should involve girls from schools, colleges and tertiary.
“We need to also to look for a sports policy that pushes for inclusive sport, we want to see sport for people with disability.”
Fifa development officer based in Botswana, Florie Ramogodi, said the seminar was meant to map the way forward in the development of women’s football.
“We are looking at ways of how to develop women’s football. We have 53 countries in Africa but at the World Cup we had only two countries and maybe there is something we are doing wrong.
“We are gathered here to look at what we have been doing wrong and what we can do to improve the situation,” said Ramogodi.
Women’s football chairperson, Mavis Gumbo, said they were grateful to Fifa for letting Zimbabwe host the seminar, as it will go a long way in the development of the game.
In the afternoon sessions, various presenters from Fifa, local women’s league, Sports Commission and the Zimbabwe Olympic Committee also took the delegates through their presentations on the current state of women’s football in Zimbabwe, how it can be improved and what Government has done for local sport.
Fifa instructor and Namibia Women’s Soccer coach, Jacqueline Shipanga, also presented a paper on how her country developed football starting from grassroots.
Today, veteran South African football analyst, who is also a Fifa instructor, Chris Bongo, will present a paper on communication while local media personnel will also present papers on the Zimbabwe media and women’s soccer.
Online Reporter