Botswana Football Association Club Licensing First Instance Body (FIB) adjudication decision to issue local coaches who compete in national leagues with licences has been delayed by CAF.
The licences are a club licensing requisite and no team can be allowed to participate in national leagues, BFA, CAF and FIFA competitions if its coach does not have them.
The delays by CAF to issue the said licenses are also frustrating the BFA, which has now made numerous attempts to get clarity and way forward on the matter.
According to the FIB chairperson Victor Sebolao, this has delayed them from announcing clubs that have been qualified nor failed because most of the clubs are affected by the non availability of coaches’ licences from CAF.
“Last season coaches were exempted and they coached without the required set standards. The BFA has since written to CAF to enquire on the way forward because some of the coaches did the courses three years back but they are yet to receive their certificates/licences,” Sebolao says.
The BFA in 2008 together with national leagues set minimum requirement of qualifications for a coach to coach in national leagues, that is, National FIRST division and Premier leagues.
At premier league level coaches must have CAF “B” licence to a coach at the elite league while at NFD coaches must have CAF “C” Licence.
There were also standards at which the teams are expected to operate at which it ha proved to be a tough call for local teams.
“We are waiting for CAF to send Licenses to BFA to know coaches who have qualified and who have failed so that we can make the final announcement of which teams have qualified to play in national leagues” FIB chairperson explained the delay.
Bra Vic, as Sebolao is commonly called within football circles further explained that some of the coaches have certificates that are not from CAF which were attained from other countries which also they are waiting for CAF to inform BFA whether they recognise those qualifications or for CAF to align them with their qualifications so that they can be allowed to coach at national team level.
The BFA and its teams after going for years operating on suspension of requirements and waiving of standards for the teams, teams have now reached a dead end since CAF is no longer accepting teams not to fulfil the standards set procedures.
The BFA president, Maclean Letshwiti wrote to CAF pleading for guidance on the way forward.
“We have conducted the CAF “C” and “B” courses from 2013, 2016 and 2017 respectively. On completion of the courses, we received certificate of attendance for “C” done in 2013 and two groups in 2016 unfortunately we did not receive the licences. The CAF “B” in 2017 certificates nor licences were issued.
The frustrated BFA explained to CAF that numerous attempts were made to CAF education department to assist with licences but to no avail.
Letshwiti requested CAF for the licences local coaches have done or for CAF to give the way forward on the issue.
The BFA leader also wanted CAF to advice whether the participants who attended the mentioned courses and passed can be used to coach in the premier league nor NFD.
