08 Oct 2023

A suggestion has been made to Botswana Football Association (BFA) membership to consider establishing a stand-alone company to run women’s soccer in the country.

This was made by the association’s president, Maclean Letshwiti when opening the BFA ordinary general assembly in Gaborone on Saturday.

He said the move would help to address issues of women and the girl-child abuse in local football.

If agreed upon, he said the company would be wholly owned by the association and would be responsible for things such as setting standards and managing cups and other competitions related to women’s football.

 “The company will also be responsible for managing and coordinating the women’s football teams,” he said.

Letshwiti said the move would be a clear sign that local football does not tolerate women and child abuse.

He said the association was also planning to bolster its whistleblowing procedures for ease of reporting issues of women and the girl-child abuse.

“Women football is going through a defining moment and we cannot allow issues such as abuse to dampen that,” he said.

Letshwiti also raised concern that the association’s executive committee was still male-dominated despite BFA having made strides towards embracing women, with the performance of the women national teams also much better. He said the association therefore needed to change and address the status quo.

“As BFA we need to review our systems to make them friendlier to other demographics like youth, women and girls. Deliberate steps are needed for our football to be more inclusive and we need more women in football, at all levels of the sport,” he said.

Letshwiti said there was no doubt that women’s football in the country experienced a phenomenal growth adding that a lot still needed to be done.

He said BFA had planned to come up with targets for regions to ensure a good number of women in leadership positions. Ends