The Botswana Football Association (BFA) and its affiliate, the Nhabe Regional Football Association (NRFA) have been challenged to prioritize more women in coaching and leadership courses.
The call was made by the Maun Stream Women’s League Chairperson Dorcus Sethoko during the BFA Preliminary B License Course official opening in Maun recently. She expressed concern about the limited numbers of women participation and involvement in coaching courses.
Out of all the 21 coaches who attended the course only one woman took part and Sethoko believes that NRFA should have engaged the women structures in the region to request for more females to be part of the course.
Though she acknowledged that women are always left behind because of the many responsibilities at home, Setlhoko challenged the two bodies to give women priority in coaching and leadership courses in football and other sporting codes.
“We have 15 women teams in Nhabe Region, therefore more women are needed to coach and lead these teams to success, just like the men’s teams do,” she appealed.
Sethoko is of the view that women can do a better job compared to men when it comes to football leadership highlighting that ‘The Mares’ Head Coach, Gaolethoo Nkutlwisang is doing wonders as she has led the women’s national team to the ongoing Women African Cup of Nations in Morocco.
“We don’t need men to coach us because we are also never given the same opportunity to coach them as well. We can equally deliver in all sporting codes therefore what we need is your support and encouragement by engaging us in all that you do,” she further pleaded.
BFA Technical Committee member who is also a B License Course Instructor, Ricardo Marape indicated that the association is willing to produce more coaches in all their affiliated associations countrywide therefore it is the duty for the latter to provide individuals from their regions. He explained that the affiliated associations are the ones that have to identify such need and then make a request to the BFA in writing asking for training or engagement to be carried out.
Marape explained that BFA through the FIFA Connect initiative decided to offer these different courses countrywide and as the affiliated associations made their applications based on their needs in their regions. NRFA requested for the B&C Licenses in Maun and Shakawe respectively.
Meanwhile NRFA Secretary, Maipelo Malatlhe revealed that the region was doing all possible to recruit women into coaching, adding that they have engaged all the 15 women teams in the division to have at least a female coach or an assistant as a requirement.
She expressed hope that in the next season the women football will have more coaches as some of them will be attending the C License course to be held in Shakawe next month. Malatlhe indicated that in all the 13 registered women’s teams, there is only one female assistant coach being Letlhogonolo Moamerika from the Cabs Football Club in Maun.
She noted that Moamerika is doing B License course that is ongoing in Maun with the hope that she will inspire other ladies to come on board. She however indicated that the ongoing B License is for those who have completed Preliminary D & C Licenses which Moamerika has acquired.
