Football Kenya Federation (FKF0 education officer Salim Ali has tipped Kenya to realise great strides in football in the near future as a result of the extensive coaching programs being rolled out by Fifa in the country.
The veteran gaffer, whose last assignment was with Mathare United, spoke as 25 more coaches commenced their CAF B License coaching course at the Kenya Institute of Special Education on Monday at a function presided by FKF President Nick Mwendwa.
"The most important thing is building capacity. The presence of these coaching courses shows you there is a lot of progress in Kenyan football,"said Ali.
"With time, the fruits will be evident in the performance of the national team and our clubs on the international scene. It's not a short term thing. Once we give our coaches the necessary knowledge they'll be able to impart it in the right way at the grassroots," said Ali.
The decorated coach reiterated the need for continuous coaching education if Kenya is to remain competitive at the top level.
“Like we have endeavoured to do in Kenya, the Ethiopian Federation has put emphasis on coaching education, to ensure young players are handled by qualified personnel,” said the immediate former Mathare United coach.
Ali is back from Ethiopia where he honoured an invitation by the Ethiopian Football Federation in conjunction with the Dutch Football Federation (KNVB) to facilitate a week-long coaching course for elite coaches.
“These courses also give our coaches and technical staff the necessary certification they need to harness employment opportunities both at home and abroad,” added the KNVB trained FKF Instructor.
Among the coaches in attendance is Jackline Juma, former Harambee Starlets assistant coach Jackline Juma.
“The federation has done a commendable job investing in the capacity building of its coaches across the country,” said Juma.
She continued to say: "With this knowledge we acquire, we apply it in our teams who are at the grassroots and we help nurture the players to ascend in the football ranks with proper knowledge and skill.”
FKF President Nick Mwendwa reiterated that the federation's vision of nurturing sports talent to build talented footballers who can enhance the quality of football in the country.
“Capacity Building of our coaches has been one of our key agendas, and our purpose is to ensure our players have qualified personnel, who can teach the proper skills and knowledge that will, in the end, see the talented footballers in our leagues and national teams, hence improving the quality of football in the country,” opined FKF President Nick Mwendwa.
The federation has so far trained over 4,000 coaches at the CAF D License level, and over 600 coaches at the CAF C License level. The first group to take part in the CAF B License course will graduate in December.
