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Nkosilathi Sibanda, [email protected]

FOOTBALL coaches in academies and schools have been awarded an opportunity to upskill and be abreast with the latest trends of the game as the Fifa Forward schools’ workshop gets underway on Thursday.

The programme is done under United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco), and World Anti-doping Organisation (Wada). We have drawn participants from all the country’s provinces, meaning that in every province we have four participants.

“In the training, the Fifa programme brings in physical health. Our workshop is designed by Fifa and rolled out to all members on March 7. We are partnering Wada and Unicef in this programme as we are targeting leaders in schools and community clubs. We want to help advance youngsters in spreading anti-doping information, interpersonal skills and other skills,” he said.

He said they were expecting at least 50 coaches to take part in the seminar.

In his brief, Fifa Forward project country manager Kudzai Chitima told Zimpapers Sports Hub that this was part of the international football mother body’s initiative of extending knowledge and advancing skills to communities.

“This is a mass participation programme that is supported by Fifa to increase football participation in young learners in schools. We will be launching this programme on March 7 but, before that we are embarking on a workshop aimed at teachers. In the workshop we are expecting schools coaches and the like to be capacitated on the current trends. We will be looking at teaching interpersonal skills, physical training and all that is essential in football development.”

The Fifa Forward project comes at a time when the Fifa development project was launched in Matabeleland North.

Binga District was to benefit from the programme that aims at uplifting football standards at grassroots level globally.

Manjolo Business Centre was the first point of call in the remotest of settlements in Matabeleland North.

More than 30 football teams, with attention on those with junior development initiatives, benefitting.

Chitima said through the project, more is yet to come that will benefit football development at grassroots level.

“This was just the beginning, with the distribution of the equipment. There will be an implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the national technical plan, which touches on all technical aspects of the whole football ecosystem.”
-@NkosieLegend.