Afcon can be a reality

Limba Mupetami

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about how far-fetched it was for Namibia to think about co-hosting the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) with Botswana in 2027. I highlighted that we were not prepared for such a grand affair.

But after doing some introspection, I withdraw my words and will gladly explain why.

Just recently, Cameroon hosted the Afcon tournament successfully. The very tournament which they took upon themselves to host even after they were told that they were not ready for it.

Now, I haven’t been to Cameroon, but speaking to those who have, and those who have equally visited Namibia, I must say that Cameroon presented many challenges.

Cameroon is a poor central African country of 27 million people. Currently, they are faced with domestic unrest , security issues and a lack of national unity, which is still continuing even after the tournament.

Now, before the tournament, Cameroon lacked the infrastructure to host the tournament.

Their roads were terrible, riddled with potholes, and their telecommunication network is not stable.

For example, the flagship Olembe complex in the capital Yaounde was not fully completed before kick-off.

A few days before, separatist fighters set off an improvised explosive device in Limbe, the coastal city due to host Afcon matches. Six were injured and property was destroyed. But Cameroon forged ahead. Hosting the tournament, I believe, compelled the government to fix some basic infrastructure such as roads and stadiums.

A student interviewed in Cameroon said many things the government had previously ignored were fixed.

He said the road to Japoma Stadium was terrible and, all of a sudden, the government fixed it. Even the road from Yassa that leads to this stadium was so terrible and there used to be traffic, but this reduced and the road was expanded.

Now, these are just some of the problems the country experienced. When you look at Namibia alone, we have one of the best road networks in Africa; we have some of the best infrastructure and even though we attempt to grab one another’s throats here and there, I can gratefully say we don’t have political unrest.

Our stadiums need an urgent overhaul, but just like Cameroon, I think we have time to do that. With Botswana’s support, I really believe we can make a run for this bid and bring some sort of unity to our football structures.

Yes, we have so many boxes to tick off, but we can challenge ourselves to use this opportunity to, just like Cameroon, fix some of the facilities we have to bring these types of tournaments to Namibia for our children to witness and perhaps fill themselves with hope of one day playing at this level.

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