Downtown Africa
In collaboration with World Rugby, Rugby Africa is delivering 8 weeks’ female-focused match officials’ online theoretical sessions. This will be followed by in-country practical sessions with local Educators and Trainers.
Mudiwa Mundawarara, Referee Manager at Rugby Africa, stated that this is a World Rugby Level 2 Course for match officiating and will follow the course outline as prescribed by World Rugby which includes game management, planning, technical aspects of the game and fitness. The course is staffed by Alhambra Nievas, World Rugby Referee Talent Development Manager, supported by 6 accredited Match Officiating Educators from across Africa, all women. At the end of the course, the successful candidates will be accredited by World Rugby as having attained level 2 match officiating.
The target audience for this course is women and girls across Africa who currently hold a World Rugby Level 1 match officiating certificate. Although referees have been welcomed from all over Africa, nominees have been received from Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Kenya, Madagascar, Namibia, Rwanda, Senegal, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia & Zimbabwe.
The objective of the course is to promote and advance World Rugby’s stated objective of accelerating the global development of women in rugby. World Rugby and Rugby Africa will be working with member unions to have strategies in place to grow the number of women match officials. The goal is to increase the pool of women eligible to be considered for inclusion in the Rugby Africa referee panels.
Commenting on the program, Peris Mukoko, Member of Rugby Africa Referee Committee hopes that the sport would “continue to nurture the young girls and women to embrace sports and understand that it is a doorway to immense opportunities.” Mukoko remarked that the course “touches on the gender agenda of getting more girls and women match officials more involved at the center stage of the game, and “builds a workforce of qualified women match officials to be involved in the growing number of games across the African continent.”
Meanwhile, Nievas Alhambra, World Rugby Referee Talent Development Manager, says “the future is bright and exciting” because there are “more and more examples of female Match Officials taking the opportunities on big stages, not only in the female game, but in top men´s competitions around the World as well.”
This article was adapted from a press release distributed by APO Group on behalf of World. You can start earning money by becoming our Independent Reporter or Contributor. Contact us at IR@downtownafrica.com
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