Somalia's minister for public service development Drs Maryan Qasim has lauded for the relocation of FIFA events to the capital Mogadishu pledging that Somali government will give more priority to the promotion of football which she described as the "most shining" sporting federation in the country.
She told this speech during a meeting with FIFA instructor
Ulric Mathiot at the civil service development Ministry on Wednesday where she
received FIFA fair play award from the expert on the behalf of the world’s top
football governing body FIFA.
During his speech the FIFA expert thanked Somali government
for creating a secure environment to organize such course and praised Somali
Football Federation for the huge job they are doing in such country.
The main objective of the instructor’s visit to the ministry was
to brief the Somali government on the importance of the grassroots course for
the development of football in a country whose institutions were completely
destroyed by civil wars and anarchy.
"In the grassroots course we target children from 6 to 12
years of age and that is intended to build football from the bottom---Somali
Football Federation has been doing more than its capacity and together with the
continuation of Grassroots activities I am sure that football in Somalia will
top high” the visiting FIFA expert told the minister Drs. Maryan Qasim whose
civil service development ministry runs sport, health and education.
For her part the minister lauded FIFA for restarting its
activities inside Somalia praising the expert for becoming the first FIFA man
to visit the war-devastated country since 1986.
"Mr. Instructor here in front of you I would like to praise
Somali Football Federation officials for devoting their lives to the
development of football in Somalia where you know life was even difficult” the minister
noted during the meeting with FIFA instructor Ulric Mathiot on Wednesday.
"The FIFA grassroots course here in Mogadishu is a very
important initiative for both the promotion of football and protecting children
from using drugs or falling into other kinds of crimes” the Somali civil
service development minister Drs Maryan Qasim indicated.
"As the government of Somalia we promise to help Somali
Football Federation in terms of its development activities as much as we can
and we demand FIFA to give a particular consideration to Somalia” she mentioned
adding that Somali government has good cooperative ties with the country’s
football federation which she said was the sole sporting federation whose
activities reached through the whole country for the past 23 years of lack of a
functioning central government in Somalia.
Somali Football Federation Media Department
Email:somalifootballmedia@gmail.com