The Zimbabwe Football Association will conduct a FIFA Grassroots Coaching Course in Masvingo from the 10th of April to the 14th.
Each of the country’s ten provinces will second six representatives; consisting of the ZIFA provincial chairperson, three male coaches and two female coaches to participate in the 5-day course.
The Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA) has seconded Ulric Mathiot, a FIFA instructor from the Seychelles, to superintend the course.
Speaking to ZIFA’s official website, www.zifa.org.zw, chairperson of the ZIFA Technical Development Committee and Vice president of the ZIFA, Omega Sibanda underscored the importance of grassroots courses, saying this course will go a long way in equipping local coach-educators with requisite skill to partake in the development of young talent.
“We are very grateful to FIFA for helping us conduct such a course, especially at a time when we are moving towards implementing the Ministry of Sport and Recreation’s nationwide multi-football club project.
“It is time for the nation to move away from treating 6-12 year olds’ football as merely recreational, we want it to be administered properly so that we adopt the bottom-up approach to development,” Sibanda said.
The major thrust of grassroots football is to take the game of football to all children between the age of 6 and 12; ensuring that they are nurtured in the best ways possible through the guidance of coach educators, not only to become professional footballers, but to become good citizens too.
“In a world where many youths are not employed, football has provided an escape route from poverty and substance abuse, therefore, we want to escalate the levels of youths who are saved from illicit ways through introducing them to organised grassroots football.
“Football as sport upholds values of fair play and tolerance, universal values which can be inculcated into children from a tender age, helping them mature into responsible citizens and professionals,” Sibanda told www.zifa.org.zw.
The FIFA grassroots course dovetails with the Ministry of Sport and Recreation’s 8000 football clubs countrywide project which received the backing of FIFA president, Gianni Infantino.
