The board members of the Central African Sports Journalists Association (ANJSCA), headed by its president Fridolin Wambobo, were granted an audience with the Central African Minister of Youth and Sports Régis Lionel Dounda to start the year 2020.
Several topics relating to the development of sport in the Central African Republic were discussed during the meeting – which was initially scheduled to take place at the end of 2019. On this occasion, the representative of the government requested the mobilization of media professionals to keep track of national sports activities.
The meeting was also an occasion to talk about the upcoming events that the ANJSCA members are going to attend, including the 83rd congress of the International Sport Press Association (AIPS), of which ANJSCA is a statutory member. The congress will be held at the beginning of February in Budapest, Hungary, with two Central African representatives, the President and the Secretary General, expected to take part.
The board presented to the minister the challenges that the young sport press association has been encountering since it was established in August 2017. One of the most challenging issues has been in the area of getting travel documents. Obtaining flight tickets for the previous congresses in Brussels, Belgium in 2018 and Lausanne, Switzerland in 2019 were not easy. It took the involvement of the members of the board to get Central African delegates to attend these major events on behalf of the Central African Republic.
“Best athletes Awards”, a major project for 2020
ANJSCA plans to organize the first edition of the “Best athletes Awards” by March 2020 in Bangui. This project was shared with the youth and sports minister and has been well received. Régis Lionel Dounda agreed in principle to support the celebration and has requested that the proposal for the project be sent to his office as soon as possible. “The athletes who have brought home medals or who have made the country proud during the year 2019 must be honored,” the minister said.
One of the concerns raised and debated by the minister and the sport journalists during the meeting was the participation of national teams in international competitions. “We will need sport journalists to support our national teams and ensure their visibility and also to better inform the Central African public about their performances,” Mr Dounda said.
The president of ANJSCA Fridolin Wambobo, took the opportunity to remind the minister that each member of his association is a journalist who works professionally within an editorial office or works as a freelance journalist. This justifies the performance and mastery of the Central African sports sector, a major asset to be explored for the major sports events in which the country is involved.
A meeting with all the members of the Central African Sports Journalists Association will take place very soon in Bangui.
