Four African coaches are part of this year’s edition of the FIFA Elite Performance Coach Mentorship Programme, an initiative that seeks to empower the next generation of female coaches, underway in Zurich, Switzerland.

The 18-month programme matches highly experienced coaches with those closer to the start of their coaching journey and falls within the scope of FIFA’s Technical Capacity-Building Programme.

The goal is to support the process of getting more female coaches to occupy and retain positions at the top level. Each coach is assigned to an experienced coach (mentor) who will guide and support the mentee throughout the mentorship.

The African quartet is made up two mentors in South African duo Desiree Ellis, head coach of the Banyana Banyana at the ongoing Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) in Morocco, and her compatriot Shilene Booysen, on the books of Egyptian side wadi Degla.

The duo is highly regarded in African women’s football circle with Ellis guiding South African to their only continental title in 2022 and a semi-final spot at the WAFCON in Morocco, whilst Booysen has had successful stints in her native South Africa, South Sudan among others.

The two coaches (mentees) are Mildred Omari Cheche, Head Coach of the Kenya U-17 Women’s Team that participated at the world championship in Dominican Republican last year and Ethiopian Selamawit Kebede, who is Head Coach of Liberia women’s team.

Also involved is Seychelle national women’s team coach, Chris Yip-Au, who is of Singapore origin.

At the opening, FIFA Chief Football Officer and two-time FIFA Women’s World Cup-winning coach Jill Ellis said: “At FIFA our job, is to try and mitigate some of those barriers, whether it's a financial issue in terms of applying for coaching licences, whether it's an awareness issue, whether it's a support issue.

“I think we should look at all the different ways that we can try and minimise the number of obstacles that exist for us to get females into coaching.”

After the launch, the mentors and mentees will have online meetings, as well as meet face-to-face (the latter each lasting a maximum of five days). The initial in-person meeting, where feasible, will be hosted by the mentee. The second visit will, where possible, then be hosted by the mentor and any further meetings at a location agreed upon by both the mentor and mentee.

Launched in 2021, the FIFA Elite Performance Coach Mentorship Programme, is designed to develop and connect high-performance coaches in the elite women's game.

It provides a structured platform for experienced coaches to mentor emerging talents, fostering continuous learning and improvement. The program is part of FIFA's broader efforts to accelerate the development of women's football.