A number of key subjects were discussed, with women’s basketball taking centre stage
ABIDJAN (Cote d’Ivoire) – FIBA Africa held its first Board meeting of the year in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, on April 15, 2026.
The event was chaired by FIBA Africa President Anibal Manave; the newly appointed FIBA Regional Director for Africa, Julian Farran; FIBA President, Sheikh Saud Ali Al-Thani and FIBA Secretary General, Andreas Zagklis.
Côte d’Ivoire Minister of Sports, Mr. Adje Silas Metch and the President of Cote d’Ivoire Basketball Federation, Moussa Diarra were also in attendance for the opening ceremony.
Before starting the meeting, a minute of silence was observed by the Board in memory of the late Yira Yacouba, former Administrative Director of FIBA Africa, who provided an extensive and outstanding contribution and support to the FIBA Regional Office of Africa.
The following key topics were discussed at the meeting:
Youth Basketball
U18 AfroBasket’s – Men and Women
After analysis of the submitted applications, the Board has decided to award the hosting rights of both 2026 U18 AfroBasket (Men and Women) to Cote d’Ivoire, following the successful organization of the Women’s Afrobasket 2025 in Abidjan, with tentative dates to be confirmed later.
Age Fraud (U16 – U18)
The Board was presented with a report on the age fraud recorded during the U16 and U18 competitions organized.
Following discussions and proposals from the Medical and Competition Councils, the Board committed to combating age fraud and consequently approved changes to the official rules governing the U16 and U18 categories.
Depending on cases observed, sanctions will also apply, including disqualification and/or suspension from participating in competitions for young players.
President Manave described the fraud on age identified in some African countries as undermining the growth of the sport across the continent.
Requesting FIBA Global’s support, Manave also outlined the implementation of the MRI tests as part of the measures to prevent fraudulent initiatives, which goes with the elaboration of clear protocol to conduct MRI tests and support National Federations ahead of ensuring a reliable tracking of database for players.
In this line, the FIBA Secretary General, Mr. Andreas Zagklis, called African countries to cooperate more closely and efficiently with FIBA when tracking players’ careers, to secure the pool of emerging African young players through the U16 and U18 Men and Women.
2026 Women’s Basketball League Africa – Final round
The Board confirmed Sporting Club of Alexandria (Egypt) as host for the final round of the WBLA, to be held from December 11 to 20, 2026.
The President of the Board acknowledged that FIBA is exploring ways to reshape the 12-team tournament in the future and confirmed that the organization is currently collaborating with a partner to develop a new WBLA format.
2027 Women’s AfroBasket
The Board was presented with a status update on scheduled qualifiers and highlighted the challenge of finding a host country for the final round to be held in 2027.
President Manave called on all members present, particularly the sub‑zone presidents, to actively engage with National Federations in their respective regions to encourage participation in, and the organization of, major continental events such as the AfroBasket, with a particular focus on women’s competitions.
Audience
A report on communications activities highlighting key points was presented, highlighting key achievements, including strong performance across social media platforms and increased visibility for the Women’s AfroBasket.
To strengthen the FIBA global communication policy for more visibility, the Board strongly advised working closely with local communication officers within National Federations to coordinate and provide appropriate training on the use of social networks as part of wide communication on major basketball events.
2027 FIBA AfroCan
The Board members were informed of the qualifiers tournament’s schedule and confirmed Rwanda as the host country of the final round to be held from 2 to 11 July 2027.
2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup Qualifiers
Windows 3 & 4 of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 qualifiers schedules were discussed, and the Board validated the following hosting countries for the respective windows as follows:
Window 3: July 2-5, 2026:
Group A: Cameroon Group B: Senegal Groups C and D: Angola
Window 4: August 27-30, 2026:
The Board extended the application deadline to May 15 before making a final decision, taking note of bids from Senegal and Tunisia.
3X3
The Board was given updates on the 3×3 National Teams competitions, highlighting progress made but also the need to strengthen the capacities of National Federations and increase their performance, by focusing on training of coaches and players; facilitating participation in international competitions, and the provision of appropriate equipment to attract players and also motivate more countries to show interest and get involved in the discipline.
The Board expressed its satisfaction with the accomplishments and strongly recommended continuing to expand activities and to integrate youth and women at the core of the 3×3 development plan. An outlook of the 2026 activities was also shared during the meeting.
Development
The development program for the Region in 2026 includes increased training for national trainers, mini-basketball activities, and national and regional camps. The Board also underlined the need for basketball development programs to focus on helping National Federations become more professional and on increasing the visibility of women’s activities (games, training, etc.) as part of gender-promotion efforts.
FIBA Basketball Academy
It was also officially announced that the site for the construction of the future FIBA Basketball Academy has been allocated by the Government of Cote d’Ivoire and the project is set to begin its implementation phase. FIBA has received full clearance from the local Authorities to begin this important project.
