By MOSES CHIMFWEMBE –
THE Confederation of African Handball (CAHB) has suspended the 2015 All Africa Games (AAG) handball qualifiers that were supposed to commence today at the National Sports Development Centre (NASDEC) in Lusaka.
CAHB secretariat in Abidjan, Ivory Coast announced the suspension on Friday owing to the non payment of participation fees by the eight Southern African countries that include hosts Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Malawi, Swaziland, Angola, Mozambique and Lesotho.
As per regulations, countries taking part in the CAHB sanctioned competitions are supposed to pay about 1, 900 Euros (approximately K15, 000) to the continental federation.
A new date is expected to be announced today after the CAHB executive committee meeting that will take place in Abidjan.
Handball Association of Zambia (HAZ) communications manager, Josab Changa confirmed the postponement in an interview yesterday.
Changa said the move was a blessing in disguise for HAZ, who are facing challenges in meeting the K315, 000 required to successfully host the event.
“CAHB communicated to us yesterday (Saturday) about the changes but I think this is an opportunity for us because it will give us ample time to raise the K195, 000 deficit from our total budget,” he said.
Changa appealed to corporate world to come on board and assist HAZ raise the K195, 000 shortfall to successfully stage the event and escape facing a fine from the continental body.
“Preparations for the qualifiers will continue as we wait for a new date to be set by the Confederation of African Handball. As for the participation fee, the host country is allowed to pay after the competition and that’s what we planned,” Changa said.