Accra, July 20, GNA - The first ever Confederation of African Football (CAF) Pilot Instructors' course for Licensed 91A' coaches opened on We= dnesday in Accra aimed at updating the instructors with some modern trends of coaching.

The course, which ends on 24 July, is being organized by CAF in collaboration with the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to develop and equi= p the instructors with the requisite skills and knowledge of the game for the successful implementation of the License 91A' course.

Nii Nortey Dua, Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports in an address said the course will serve as a tool for training and systematic buildup of coaches of the continent.

The Deputy Minister said the course serves a major leap in the continuous call for African coaches to handle their national teams, a feat he described as achievable.

Kwesi Nyantakyi, GAF President in his opening address described coaching as one of the four pillars of football management, whilst applauding the continental soccer governing body on the initiative. He said it is incumbent on stakeholders to help raise the coaching standards in Africa and the course will serve a major platform towards empowering local coaches to excel in their performance.

Nyantakyi, who doubles as a CAF Executive Committee member added that the implementation of the License 91A' coaching certificate will put Afr= ican coaches in a good stead to compete with the rest of the world in the not to= o distant future. Abdel Moneim Hussein, CAF Director of Football Development said the organization of the course under the CAF Coaching License system has been implemented in over 30 countries in its few years of initiation. He reiterated CAF's commitment to the development of coaching on the continent as part of its vision to raise African football to an enviable height.

Hussein expressed conviction that Africa can win the World Cup as its coaches will be in a capacity to rub shoulders with the rest of the world. About 40 participants drawn from across the continent are participatin= g in the course.