Rwanda U23 National Football Team will not participate in the CECAFA U23 tournament due to be held in Bahir-Dar, Ethiopia from July 17th 2021 to July 31st 2021. Scandinavia WFC (a women’s football club) as well will not take part in the upcoming CAF WCL CECAFA Zonal Qualifiers 2021 scheduled for July 17th to July 31st 2021 in Kenya.
The decision was taken by the Rwanda Football Association (FERWAFA) due to the recrudescence of the Covid-19 pandemic in the region and Rwanda particularly, which raises assumptions of the presence of the highly infectious COVID-19 Delta Variant.
Reference is also made to the new Covid-19 preventive measures drawn by the Government of Rwanda imposing partial lockdown on most activities including contact and team sports as well as movement restrictions between districts, provinces and the City of Kigali.
“The Council of Central and East African Football Associations (CECAFA) has been notified of these unfortunate proceedings”, FERWAFA said in a statement. “The health and safety of athletes and officials remains our utmost priority and are called to join hands in the fight against COVID-19”, the Rwanda FA added.
Cases of COVID-19 continue to surge with daily fatalities amid fears of delta variant which officials say could be in the country already. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Delta Variant has been detected in at least 98 countries around the world and is quickly becoming the dominant strain in many countries. Rwanda’s neighbours, Kenya and Uganda, have already confirmed the presence of the variant in the countries.(End)