{"id":11594,"date":"2022-01-07T16:08:30","date_gmt":"2022-01-07T16:08:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/?p=11594"},"modified":"2022-01-07T15:45:39","modified_gmt":"2022-01-07T15:45:39","slug":"afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon","title":{"rendered":"Afcon poses massive challenges for host Cameroon"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mozambique. <\/strong><\/span>The Africa Cup of Nations, kicking off Sunday in Cameroon after a delay over Covid concerns, is also posing major security, political and organisational challenges for the host nation.<\/p>\n

Some were fearing yet another postponement, with African football chief Patrice Motsepe saying late last month that the rapid spread of the Omicron variant in a country with a low vaccination rate is \u201can enormous challenge\u201d.<\/p>\n

The African Football Confederation (known by its French acronym CAF) has set down draconian rules that may bar fans from entering stadiums en masse.<\/p>\n

Spectators must be fully vaccinated and show a negative PCR test less than 72 hours before a match. Stadium capacity is set at 60 percent though it will be increased to 80 percent when Cameroon\u2019s own \u201cIndomitable Lions\u201d play \u2014 notably, in the opening match against Burkina Faso on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Motsepe, a South Africa mining tycoon, has already acknowledged the risks presented by a proliferation of false tests. Covid is already having an impact with Senegal delaying its departure for the tournament, after three players tested positive and tiny Gambia saying it is facing a \u201ccatastrophe\u201d because it is not allowed to replace players hit by Covid.<\/p>\n

Cameroon, a poor central African country of 27 million people, has officially recorded 1,840 Covid deaths from 110,000 infections, though experts warn of under-reporting.<\/p>\n

Few people wear masks and only 2.4 percent of the population has been vaccinated in the country led for nearly four decades by strongman Paul Biya. The authorities are also struggling with separatist gunmen in the west and jihadist raiders in the north — and some fear militants will seize the country\u2019s turn in the sporting spotlight to launch attacks.<\/p>\n

Security forces in the west are on high alert after armed groups sent threatening messages to teams in Group F, gathering Tunisia, Mali, Mauritania and Gambia.<\/p>\n

The four teams are scheduled to play in the coastal town of Limbe, and their training site is Buea, a hotspot of separatist unrest.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe threats are very serious,\u201d Blaise Chamango, head of an NGO in Buea called Human Is Right, told AFP by telephone.<\/p>\n

Cameroon was chosen in 2014 to stage the African football showcase in 2019 but fell behind with preparations. Egypt stepped in at the last minute to host the event in Cameroon\u2019s place.<\/p>\n

The 2021 tournament was postponed twice, first because of fears that torrential seasonal rains could affect the tight schedule, and then because of the Covid pandemic.<\/p>\n

But major infrastructure projects were also at issue, with the flagship Olembe complex in the capital Yaounde still not fully completed.<\/p>\n

Cameroon\u2019s hardline President Biya, 88, has looked to the hosting of the African football fiesta as a way to burnish his international image following his latest disputed election victory in 2018, handing him a seventh term.<\/p>\n

Late last month, dozens of activists from the main opposition party were given prison terms of up to seven years for taking part in peaceful protests against his rule.<\/p>\n

In Yaounde, Biya\u2019s portrait often appears besides ads for the football tournament.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has always used football as a political tool to rally Cameroonians and surf on their success,\u201d said Jean-Bruno Tagne, author of \u201cThe Tragedy of the Indomitable Lions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some in the opposition and civil society have also denounced \u201cthe indecency\u201d of the cost of organising the cup in a country whose poverty rate has hit nearly 40 percent and a third of the population lives on less than two euros a day, according to the World Bank.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf Cameroon wins, Cameroonians can forget everything. But if it goes badly, there will need to be scapegoats and heads will certainly roll,\u201d political scientist Stephane Akoa said.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Mozambique<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Mozambique. The Africa Cup of Nations, kicking off Sunday in Cameroon after a delay over Covid concerns, is also posing major security, political and organisational challenges for the host nation. Some were fearing yet another postponement, with African football chief Patrice Motsepe saying late last month that the rapid spread of the Omicron […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":11593,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,8,17,16],"tags":[233,281,283],"class_list":["post-11594","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-homepage-english","category-sport","category-twitter","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-mozambique","tag-mozambique"],"yoast_head":"\nAfcon poses massive challenges for host Cameroon - Mozambique<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Africa Cup of Nations, kicking off Sunday in Cameroon after a delay over Covid concerns, is also posing major securi ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Afcon poses massive challenges for host Cameroon\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Africa Cup of Nations, kicking off Sunday in Cameroon after a delay over Covid concerns, is also posing major securi ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Mozambique\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-01-07T16:08:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/sites\/64\/2022\/01\/img-61d860095413e.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"666\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Afcon poses massive challenges for host Cameroon\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-01-07T16:08:30+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon\"},\"wordCount\":622,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/sites\/64\/2022\/01\/img-61d860095413e.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Mozambique\",\"Mozambique\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"homepage-english\",\"sport\",\"twitter\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/mozambique\/all-news\/afcon-poses-massive-challenges-for-host-cameroon\",\"name\":\"Afcon poses massive challenges for host Cameroon - 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