Sseninde bravery set to open new dawn for women’s soccer

Thought leaders: (L-R) Moderator Usher Komugisha, coach Ayub Khalifan, Post Bank’s Jackie Tahakanizibwa, Buganda Katikiro Mayiga, Sseninde, Uspa’s Kanyomozi and Express chairman Kiwanuka Kiryowa pose after the workshop. Photo By John Batanudde

For many years to come, most of the developments that will suffice in women’s football will be attributed to last Thursday’s Sseninde Women Football Workshop held at Mackinnon Suites.

The day-long workshop was organised by Queens Park Rangers (QPR) defender and midfielder Jean Sseninde, who three years ago also started the Sseninde Women Football Development Camp, a competition that gives opportunities to girls that do not play in the Fufa Women Elite League (FWEL) to showcase their talents.

“Jean is such a brave girl for starting this,” Buganda’s Katikkiro Charles Peter Mayiga, who led the discussion on the need to eliminate cultural taboos that stop girls from playing the beautiful game, said.

Kawempe Muslim Secondary School coach Ayub Khalifan said the 25year old defender’s achievement “should encourage those that have been in the game longer to do more to uplift standards of women’s football”. Uganda Sports Press Association president Patrick Kanyomozi called her “an icon” of the game while Fufa vice president Justus Mugisha promised that the governing body’s executive will endorse “Jean as an ambassador of women’s football in Uganda”.

Cultural taboos
To understand how far women’s football has come, you needed to listen to Khalifan, who has for over 20 years transformed his team from one despised for flouting the rules in a Muslim-founded school to celebrated four-time Fufa Women Elite League champions.
“Everyone did not want to see girls in shorts. But we fought on mainly because the four points added to the girls’ academic weights after representing their country at the FEASSSA (Federation of East Africa Secondary Schools Sports Association) Games always ensured we sent more girls to university as a school,” Khalifan said.

The Katikkiro also highlighted on the need to “give the girl child opportunities” arguing that girls are as capable as boys. “It is a bit hypocritical to argue that women should not be involved in physical activities because in Africa, women labour a lot. They take care of homes, fetch water and firewood and so on.”

He, however, urged the fraternity to note that culture is situational. “Culture has its time and place. I therefore do not agree that through playing football, girls violate certain traditional values.
“Long before football came, Buganda had its games and women also participated in them,” added the premier, who promised that Buganda will within the next four years have started its own women’s football teams.

Emphasis on discipline
Sticking to the promissory and cautious tone, son of the land and Express FC chairman Kiryowa Kiwanuka also said his club will have a team in the 2020/21 season.
“We are understanding the landscape because bringing up a girl child in a stadium full of men is challenging. We need to bring back women into the stadium by fighting hooliganism. If our mothers did not take us to stadiums while our fathers managed the clubs, we would never be involved today,” Kiwanuka argued.

He, however, warned that; “the question of equality can never be a reality because women and men are indeed different.”
“We need to look at women football as new phenomenon that must crawl, walk and then fly. We need to make a realization of what we can achieve through discipline, planning, understanding the roles of all stakeholders, accountability and transparency.”

Speaking money, another interesting subject on the day was on ‘better branding strategies to entice sponsorships and partnerships.’

Building brands
Post Bank’s marketing and communications manager Jackie Tahakanizibwa argued that as an untapped market women’s football leaders need to “scan through the market to see what activities brands are promoting then write precise proposals highlighting what the game can bring on board to sponsors.

Sponsorship is not a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activity.”
Tahakanizibwa further said; “not many people see women’s football as a mainstream sport. So you need to fight for recognition as women and build your fan base.”

In her last remarks, Tahakanizibwa summed up the journey that women’s football must walk to make its visions become a reality. And Sseninde will always be applauded for starting this very important discussion.