AFCON bid could hit dead end
Chakalisa Dube | Saturday April 15, 2023 06:00
The Botswana and Namibia bid, dubbed BONA 2027, had gained traction in recent weeks with the conclusion of the facilities audit conducted by a South African company.
But in what could throw spanners in the works, CAF issued a notice to its member associations to express their interest in hosting the 2027 AFCON tournament and set a May 23 deadline. This is the date on which all prospective bidders should have submitted all the bid documents. The winning bid will be announced in September.
However, Botswana and Namibia will have to move swiftly and produce a bid book to meet the CAF deadline. In February, Botswana and Namibian said that the bid book would be ready no later than May. Now, the most challenging factor is that a lead consultant to prepare the bid book is yet to be appointed. The Botswana National Sport Commission (BNSC) has been given the mandate to look for a consultant.
The consultant will require time to assess the information at their disposal before compiling the bid. As a result, the May 23 deadline might mean that Botswana and Namibia are unable to produce a convincing bid. On Wednesday afternoon, the BNSC chief executive officer (CEO), Tuelo Serufho gave an update on the appointment of the consultant. “We are yet to get official communication from CAF, but we are at the tail end of the procurement process concerning appointing a lead consultant to compile a bid book.
I cannot give a precise date as to when we would have appointed the consultant. We are, however, cognisant of the time we have to produce and submit the bid book,” Serufho told Mmegi Sport. Even Ashford Mamelodi, the Chairperson of the BONA 2027 Bid Committee, admitted that he is worried that it might be challenging to timely produce the bid book if a consultant is not appointed on time. “If we do not get a decision (on the appointment of the consultant) by the end of the week, we may have trouble meeting deadlines,” he said. Botswana and Namibia face a stiff challenge from other established nations, in terms of infrastructure, that have shown interest in bidding for the 2027 showpiece.
Nations such as Senegal, Burkina Faso, Morocco, Tanzania, and Uganda are all interested in hosting the 2027 AFCON edition. Early this week, the deputy chairperson of the bid committee, John Muinjo told a Namibian newspaper, New Era, that CAF’s notice inviting bidders for the 2027 AFCON should serve as a ‘clarion’ reminder to both countries that time is of the essence. “That means we have to produce the bid book in the shortest possible time. We never had much time, as the facility audit exercise was not an easy undertaking.
Despite all odds against us, we are very determined to land BONA 2027 at all costs,” Muinjo was quoted by New Era Sport. In March, Botswana and Namibia completed a facilities audit which will be used to guide their bid. However, the findings have not been made public but the report was handed to respective heads of state, President Mokgweetsi Masisi and his Namibian counterpart, Hage Geingob.