Kamweru proves to be the Kenyan football ‘big lady with big brains’

By FeverPitch Reporter

Women’s football in Kenya has stagnated despite the great potential it has and abundant talent exhibited by ambitious female players.

Previous offices showed little interest, if any, for the discipline and an example of the sad side of it was when Harambee Starlets withdrew from All Africa Games Qualifiers in February under unclear circumstances.

Hundreds of talented players, especially from schools, have nowhere to extend their career with very few clubs existing in the country.

This has seen a number of players switch sports after school as football talent among females goes down the drain.

One woman is now out to help revolutionise women’s football and place Kenya on the world map in the next five years.

Football Kenya Association (FKA) women’s representative Rachel Kamweru (pictured) asserts that gone are days when feminine football was despised and gender parity must prevail in the sport locally.

"Women football should be taken with all the seriousness it deserves. Our football has been vocal and now it should be action," says Kamweru.

Kamweru indicates that she will use her leadership position to help revive the game in the country.

The ‘big lady with great dreams’ looks forward to the time when Kenya will have effective leagues from sub-branch to national level.

Development quagmire

She said: "Our sport is in development quagmire because we lack organised structures to tap and develop talent."

"I have a lot of faith in (Sam) Nyamweya’s office because its occupants including myself have interest of football at heart," she says.

Kamweru says she will work hard to give girls a higher level of support by introducing grassroots coaching courses in primary and secondary schools to girls who take up the sport.

She also looks forward to organise sub-branch, provincial and county women leagues to identify players for selection to the national under-14, under-17 and senior team.

Organise leagues

Her immediate dream is, however, to work together with FKA to jump start a national women’s league of 16 clubs and the top tier competition and also launch a 16-team Nationwide League as the second tier competition.

Under the slogan ‘women football future is here’, Kamweru says she will work closely with the national office to ensure that all funds reserved for women football are solely used for the purpose.

"I thank the electorate for the faith they have shown in electing me as women’s representative. I promise to work around the clock to ensure feminine football is treated the same as masculine," she told FeverPitch in Nairobi yesterday.

Kamweru is certain that if treated well, women football has great chances of taking Kenya to Fifa World Cup ahead of men’s.

She said: "When Fifa fully incorporated the discipline in its family President Sepp Blatter said ‘the future of the game is in women’s football’.

Kamweru, who is also a councillor in Nairobi, maintains that with concerted efforts by all stakeholders, women football will go places both locally and beyond borders.