Sports

'Now go for CAF Pro license,' graduates urged

Graduation ceremony for the CAF A license holders that took place on Friday
 
Graduation ceremony for the CAF A license holders that took place on Friday

Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the CAF A license this past weekend, John stated that it gives her an insurmountable gratitude to see how local coaches and international coaches are taking on the initiative to earn the necessary qualifications. “We are here to celebrate the success of our coaches who now qualify to be bestowed the CAF A coaching license. We have a cohort of 23 graduates and this cohort follows from a previous group of 20 coaches that graduated last year,” John said. The top official at the ministry highlighted that the coaches’ great work should not go unnoticed as the journey to acquire the CAF license was definitely not an easy task. “I understand that in football, attaining a CAF A is not a small feat by any standard.

This is an elite coaching license so I therefore would like to commend you for your commitment and the hard work you have shown in acquiring this license,” she said. Though John was beaming with elation to see Botswana producing another cohort of coaches with CAF A license, she noted that she wishes to see coaches attain the most sought CAF Pro license, which is possessed by the likes of Pitso Mosimane. “I hear that there is another grading license that is more than the CAF A license and no one in Botswana has it. I am challenging you that this is not the end. If it is that expensive, there are partnerships that we could take,” John urged graduates.

John maintained that this is a start of great things for local coaches as they are one step away from the elite license. She elaborated that she wishes the coaches can acquire the license and land jobs outside Botswana to coach, which will contribute immensely to the growth of football in locally. On behalf of the CAF A license graduates, Nelson Olebile said they will forever remain grateful for the chance they got to take their coaching career a notch up. “It was not easy but through our determination, we managed to complete the coaching course. But this could have not been done without the valuable contribution of the Botswana Football Association (BFA),” Olebile said.

Taking into consideration John’s words, Olebile said the coaches are up for the task to acquire the most sought after license. The graduates include Daniel Nare, Thabo Motang, Elias Chinyemba, Innocent Morapedi among others.