The International Basketball Association (FIBA) on Monday, December 10, 2024, began a week-long youth basketball camp in Liberia.
Taking place at the Invincible Sports Park in Sinkor, the camp features approximately 30 players aged 14-16 and 20 locally based coaches. The training is being supervised by internationally certified basketball instructor Roland Owino from Kenya, in collaboration with the Liberia Basketball Association (LBA) Technical Department.
In an interview with journalists on Tuesday, LBA President Abraham Samukai expressed gratitude to FIBA for selecting Liberia for the program. He described it as a significant opportunity for basketball players and coaches to acquire new technical knowledge.
Samukai noted that after Liberia hosted the FIBA Africa Zone-3 Women's Basketball Africa League qualifiers--featuring two Liberian clubs--FIBA identified technical deficiencies in the country's basketball infrastructure.
"After the women's basketball tournament here, FIBA said they saw some deficiencies in terms of our referees and coaches' ability to develop players from U-20, U-18, U-17, and U-16 levels. As a result, they approved this training camp. There are two categories as part of this camp: youthful coaches and players--10 girls and 20 boys--focusing mainly on the rules of basketball," Samukai said.
He lamented that most referees and match commissioners in the local basketball league have exceeded the required age limits. Samukai disclosed that FIBA has recommended prioritizing youth development programs.
"It's unfortunate, but we must acknowledge it. We tested and trained the referees, but many have passed the required age range to sit for the test again and become certified. The same applies to match commissioners. That's why FIBA advises us to go back to the grassroots," he explained.
The LBA President added that the 20 participating coaches would be deployed across the country to train coaches at the high school level.
FIBA's Head of National Federation and Sport Development, Michael Mamenet, said the goal of the initiative is to nurture young talent and develop coaches in all member countries.
"The strategy behind organizing this camp for the Liberia Basketball Association is to support them in identifying and developing talent. We organize youth competitions at the FIBA Africa level, and in the last U-18 competition, Liberia participated. We have seen Liberia's potential and want to help them sustain this progress," Mamenet stated.
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He praised Liberian coaches for their dedication but emphasized the need for further support.
The FIBA Youth Camp, designed to cultivate young basketball talent, aims to train the next generation of players on the African continent. These youth camps are part of FIBA Africa's development program, which has impacted 80% of African countries since 2021.
