This article was automatically translated from HIBAPRESS, the Arabic version:
Hibapress-Rabat-Fifa
.Oumou Kane is director of the Women’s Football Department in the Mauritanian Football Federation (FFRIM)
Under its leadership, discipline experiences a boom in the country
The Mauritanian took part in the program for the promotion of women in FIFA football management positions in 2018
“I have always fought for just causes. I will constantly continue to fight for equal rights, especially those of young people and women. Words like these have a particular resonance on March 8, 2025, International Women’s Day. They were pronounced at the microphone ofInside FIFA by Oumou Kane, director of the Women’s Football Department in the Mauritanian Football Federation (FFRIM), on the sidelines of The opening ceremony of the Academy of Talents which took place on February 26, in Nouakchott. And if his words have an important echo, his actions too.
It was very early that Oumou Kane was faced with forms of discrimination. “I had the opportunity to go to school during my childhood, which was not given to everyone in my community,” she says. “People, especially women, thought it was not normal to let a young girl go to school. But I fought to get out of this shackles, to go to study, and to show the young girls that they had in her the power to become the megaphone of those who could not be heard. »»
Among his many feats of arms, Oumou Kane founded in 2011 the multicultural association for a better future (AMAM). This non -governmental organization (NGO) militates in favor of cultural brewing as well as the rapprochement of peoples and cultures. As president, she has enormously changed mentalities, even if it means paying the high price. She notably had serious setbacks with the justice of her country in 2017, after organizing a peaceful demonstration whose aim was to claim better living conditions for marginalized young people.
“I was convinced that something had to be done. With hindsight, it was a necessary fight and a great experience. It seemed crucial to me to act, ”she explains. Courageous, Oumou Kane knows how to move the lines. Diplomat, she is able to bring down barriers. This is why the Mauritanian Football Federation called on it in 2016.
I am a relentless activist for women’s rights
Oumou Kane Director of the Women’s Football Department within the FFRIM
“I know the environment in which women live in Africa, I know what is the weight of tradition and society. I have always campaigned for access to education, for the end of early weddings of young girls. Allowing women to be able to live from their passion is also a workhorse for me. And football does appear to be a lever for all these women who wish to put an end to everything they live on a daily basis, ”explains the Mauritanian.
Progress is immense. Women’s football is booming in this country where football has only been conjugated for male for a long time. Under the impetus of Oumou Kane, the national female selection even emerged in 2019. The emotion of the interested party is still palpable: “It was a historic moment for us. Some girls started football very early and only dreamed of representing the country one day, ”she said. “The first match against Djibouti, in August 2019, will remain engraved in my memory: see these young girls, eyes wide, enter the field with the jersey of the national team, worn by the public, was a fantastic moment to live. »»
The objective is now to integrate the FIFA/Coca-Cola women’s world rankingthat just joined Djibouti exactly. “This is the goal! We prepare it with Jordi (Arimany), the Spanish coach of our team. Slowly but surely, we will end up getting there. I am hopeful, ”confirms Oumou Kane. “For this, we have worked a lot on the development of basic football, in particular the U-15 and U-17 categories. Ultimately, this should have an impact on the senior. »»
FIFA added its stone to this beautiful building: Mauritania was indeed selected in 2023 to integrate a program Managed jointly by the management body of football and by the French Development Agency (AFD) whose aim is to set up inclusive football academies in Africa who also teach young people, girls in particular, to prepare for life outside the field. “The atmosphere is really wonderful. The girls have been joining the center for a year, and they are delighted, ”says Oumou Kane.
Besides, the Mauritanian herself made the experience of a program stamped FIFA a few years ago. She had indeed participated in the 2018 edition of Program for the promotion of women at football management positions Which aims to promote the accession of women to management functions in the world of the round ball: “an absolutely brilliant adventure”, she recalls. “The kind of experience that changes the vision of things and gives the power to believe in oneself”. Undoubtedly, this clairvoyance and this confidence helped Oumou Kane win so many fights, while other battles await him and Mauritania on the green rectangle.
