The Guyana Football Federation (GFF) recently announced a funding system, much like that of FIFA’s global funding, for Regional Member Associations (RMA) in Guyana. Following the publishing of the official rulebook for the Members Financial Assistance Programme (M-FAP), Guyana’s nine RMA’s are now eligible for funding in four key areas.
During their first media engagement of the year on Tuesday, executives of the GFF were questioned about the measures in place to assure that the Members association utilize the opportunity to it’s full potential.
GFF President Wayne Forde
To this, GFF President Wayne Forde answered that the RMA’s sluggishness may not initially require the intervention of the local Federation.
“For starters, they will all be receiving $50,000 each month for their operations, they will be getting good compliment of material and they will be getting in on average; for the senior leagues, I think they get close to $3.6 million to help run that, and other competitions.”
Forde continued saying, “So they will receive all the tools that they need to get the job done. If for some reason some of them still appear not to be able to get the job done, then I think it will be up to the members within the jurisdiction to make those decisions, the GFF, as the governing body does not intervene or interfere, unless it is a matter of compliance or other issues regarding to how a member operates within the parameters of our lower statutes.”
As such, Forde went on to disclose that any slip-ups may first be subject to ‘meaningful engagements’.
“And the fact is that we’ve always been serious. But I think, you know, our job is not to label problems or to call our members out, without having a meaningful engagement with them, and really using our minds to understand the exact challenges that they’re facing,” Forde shared
He then added, “So, out of that, we develop the program, and the investment that is going to be going into a regional association is unprecedented exponentially.”
Sharing that disbursements have already begun, Forde hinted at a minor misdemeanor on the part of some RMAs but reiterated the GFF’s commitment to working along with them for the best possible result.
The Football boss explained, “So, I have to remain optimistic that the members and they have expressed this to me directly that they’re all excited for this level of support that we’re now bringing to them, many of them would have received their, already close to $900,000 into their respective bank account, some are struggling to get their bank account issue sorted out, which is an indication as to how they would have operated in the past. But we are committed to working with them.”
“They are our members and we have a responsibility to take care of them and guide them. And hopefully, you know, it turns out the way that that we all expected will turn out.”
Under M-FAP, members of the GFF are now entitled to support in four key areas: administration and operations, equipment and materials, competitions and technical development, and infrastructure.
