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Our bid process is transparent – CAF

Heads together: The Botswana team in Cairo for the bid announcement last week  PIC: MYSC
Heads together: The Botswana team in Cairo for the bid announcement last week PIC: MYSC

CAF has said its bidding processes are above board after Botswana felt ‘cheated’ during the recent awarding of the rights to host the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations finals.

On Wednesday, the Minister of Youth, Gender, Sport, and Culture, Tumiso Rakgare accused CAF of “shifting goalposts” during the process of determining the bid winners. East African countries Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, with a joint bid, won the rights to organise the 2027 tournament, meaning Botswana’s effort failed at the first attempt.

But Botswana authorities feel CAF should have done better, particularly pointing to the mother body’s failure to publicise results from the executive committee’s vote by a secret ballot. Additionally, sources said Rakgare was not pleased that a report presented to the CAF executive committee by assessors’ who visited bidding countries, did not influence the outcome.

Editor's Comment
Micro-procurement maze demands urgent reform

Whilst celebrating milestones in inclusivity, with notably P5 billion awarded to vulnerable groups, the report sounds a 'siren' on a dangerous and growing trend: the ballooning use of micro-procurement. That this method, designed for small-scale, efficient purchases, now accounts for a staggering 25% (P8 billion) of total procurement value is not a sign of agility, but a 'red flag'. The PPRA’s warning is unequivocal and must be...

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