FIFPRO Africa strengthens its relations with CAF

The Footballers Union of Botswana (FUB) hosted colleagues from other African football unions for two days as part of the FIFPRO Africa General Assembly, which was attended by a number of key actors of African football.

The President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Patrice Motsepe and Women's Football Director, Meskerem Goshime were present at the event, which shone a light on how the continent's player unions have gone from success to success.

President Motsepe discussed the partnership between CAF and FIFPRO with FIFPRO Africa President Geremie Njitap, FIFPRO President David Aganzo and FIFPRO Africa Secretary General Stéphane Burchkalter, among others. President Motsepe pledged that CAF would extend its cooperation agreement with FIFPRO Africa, which expires in December this year, and agreed that CAF, its member associations and FIFPRO Africa should strive to create collective labor agreements.

“Collective bargaining makes sense,” said President Motsepe. "It’s all about the players, who are the heart of football. The talent of our African players is well known around the world, but we, the stakeholders of African football, must invest more in them, respect their rights and protect them further. The next time I address the CAF General Assembly, I will speak to all CAF Member Associations to urge them to contribute to the advancement of footballers' rights in Africa with the FIFPRO and its unions".

FIFPRO Africa President, Geremie Njitap thanked President Motsepe for his words and added that FIFPRO Africa is keen to develop its relationship with CAF, especially by organizing regular meetings and cooperating on various projects aimed at educating, develop and protect players.

"We want to work more closely with President Motsepe and CAF. The President's visit showed that he appreciates our relationship, and with his commitment, his kind words and the way he emphasized that the players are at the heart of football, it gave us the impression that our two organizations are heading in the same direction".

David Aganzo, the first FIFPRO President in 14 years to attend a FIFPRO Africa General Assembly, said he enjoyed the "intense" two-day meeting in Botswana. "I thank FIFPRO Africa for hosting me," he said. "I appreciated the closeness and transparency of their work. The African representatives work together as if they were a united family and try to strengthen each other. I think this is an example for other divisions.

Governing bodies from the host country also attended the AGA, including the Minister of Youth, Gender, Sport and Culture, Tumiso Rakgare, and the President of the Botswana Football Association (BFA), Maclean Letshwiti.

Mr Letshwiti spoke of the good collaboration between his organization and FUB and how the two organizations have advanced football in Botswana through the establishment of a National Dispute Resolution Chamber and a Model Contract for players, one of the few countries in Africa to have done so. "The players are the most important asset in football," said the BFA president. "Of course we fight with the union, but at the end of the day we understand the importance of each.”

Knowledge sharing

The FIFPRO Africa General Assembly was an opportunity for the national unions to inform each other about the work carried out in the region and to define the collective vision of the division.

Highlights of the event included a panel titled "How to modernize professional football in Africa after the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023", as well as the announcement of an upcoming campaign on fake agents in Africa.

With the FIFA Women's World Cup just months away, which will feature four African nations (a record), FIFPRO's push for global conditions and compensation for the tournament has taken center stage. The event included a panel discussion on how to modernize professional football in Africa after Australia/New Zealand 2023, in which the following participants took part : 

• Meskerem Goshim, head of women's football at CAF

• Sarah Gregorius, Director of Global Policy and Strategic Relations at FIFPRO

• Teresa Caleb, member of the board of directors of FIFPRO Africa, member of the women's football committee of CAF, vice-president of the Kenyan Football Women’s Association (Kefwa)

• Tsholo Setlhoko, head of women's football at the BFA

• Bonang Mosetlha, FUB vice-president and captain of the Botswana women's national team

The two-day event was also an opportunity to discuss reports from the FIFPRO Africa commission, as well as FIFPRO's overall strategy, stakeholder relations, legal matters and the announcement of a next campaign on bogus agents, conducted jointly with the International Labor Organization and the Didier Drogba Foundation.

"For the Botswana Footballers' Union, this is a historic moment," union president Onalethata Tshekiso said of the AGA. "To organize this general assembly, to welcome our colleagues from all these African countries and the president of CAF, one of the most respected person on our continent, says a lot. We, the FUB, are doing something very important which contributes seriously to improve the situation of professional footballers in our country.”