Football Association of Malawi (Fam) has taken a step backward by failing to recruit permanent coaches for the Malawi Women’s National Football Team, the Scorchers, and junior teams for nearly a year.
The lack of permanent technical panels could potentially affect the teams’ preparations for upcoming international competitions this year.
At its recent Executive Committee meeting held in Salima, the association decided that there would be no permanent technical panel for the junior teams.
Fam President Fleetwood Haiya said the committee resolved that only Scorchers’ coach Lovemore Fazili might be offered a permanent contract.
“The previous Executive Committee meeting resolved that all teams should participate with coaches recruited on a temporary basis, except for the head coach of the Scorchers, who may be offered a permanent position.
“All of this is dependent on the government’s commitment to funding its national teams,” Haiya said in a written response yesterday.
Ten months after winning the 2023 Cosafa Women’s Championship in South Africa, Fazili is still without a contract as Fam is yet to offer him one.
When contacted Tuesday, Fazili was reluctant to comment on the situation.
“It is difficult for me to comment on the issue. I will be informed when everything has been sorted out,” he said.
Apart from the Scorchers, Under-20 and Under-17 squads have been without permanent coaches following the expiry of their contracts in December last year.
Fam appointed Mighty Mukuru Wanderers Assistant Coach Bob Mpinganjira as interim coach for the U-20 team, replacing Patrick Mabedi, who is now the senior Flames coach.
Deklerk Msakakuona, who was in charge of the U-17 team for over four years, has since returned to the Malawi Police Service after his contract expired.
Earlier this year, Fam met with government officials and indicated plans to hire coaches for the three national teams on a permanent basis.
However, the government has yet to grant Fam consent to proceed with the appointments.
Government is responsible for salaries of the national team coaches, but Fam is currently paying salaries and benefits for Mabedi as the process remains incomplete.
Spokesperson for the Ministry of Youth and Sports Macmillan Mwale said Fam has not officially communicated to them on the issue of the recruitment of coaches.
Malawi National Council of Sports Chief Executive Officer Henry Kamata also expressed uncertainty on the matter.
The Malawi Under-20 National Football Team is set to participate in the 2025 Afcon/ Cosafa qualifiers from September 25 to October 6 in South Africa, while the Under-17 side will compete in the qualifiers in Maputo, Mozambique, in December.
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