The Inter-Cities tournament that was to be held in Nairobi in July following the death of top official Ali Bana in London.
Ronny Owino the secretary of East, Central and Southern Africa Inter Cities Committee (ECSAIB) said Ali was negotiating with a sponsor to revive the event.
“We had a meeting with him in Nairobi in January after the FIBA Africa Zone Five show and he informed us he had already identified a sponsor,” said Owino. “We do not know what will happen with the tournament’s revival now. But we will follow up.”
The last Inter-Cities championship was held in Nairobi in 2017. Nairobi beat Kampala in the finals. Dar es Salaam, Mombasa, Juba and Mogadishu also took part.
Agina Wesonga, executive member of ECSAIB said Ali performed his duties with dedication and was passionate about Somali basketball development.
He was Somali Basketball Federation and FIBA Africa Zone Five Head of Marketing. He was also head of Technical and Marketing at Somalia Basketball Federation.
FIBA Africa President Anibal Manave and Zone Five President El Hesham Hariri from Egypt spoke highly of their departed colleague.
Manave said: “Bana Ali truly played a key role in the history of Somali and African basketball.”
Ali served in East and Eastern Africa including Burundi, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda.
The Head of the National Committee of Uganda, Mohamed Santur and Kenya Basketball Federation (KBF) first vice chairman Hilmi Ali.
