In its strategic objective to be a worthy and respected organisation within the Olympic Movement, ANOCA, under the stewardship of the Honourable Mustapha BERRAF, initiated an ambitious project to help NOCs with no headquarters to build one. The Project sought to equip African NOCs with modern headquarters in a bid to streamline their managerial and administrative performances and, by so doing, create a conducive environment for these structures to foster youth development in Africa. The Project is coordinated by Engr Ahmed Habu GUMEL, who also doubles as ANOCA Treasurer General. As a master strategist, with a wealth of experience and expertise, this senior official has lent momentum to this Project that, today, does Africa proud. He has been sparing no effort to support NOCs in their various requisite procedures and stages. Since its inception, out of the 26 applications for funding submitted between 2022 and 2024, about 14 (fourteen) have received funds to start building their headquarters. Out of the 26 approved projects, only one, Eswatini, has been completed and the headquarters was commissioned in 2023. While Malawi, Equatorial Guinea and Togo have received the funds necessary for their projects, the following countries have received their first instalments: Angola, Benin, Chad, Cape Verde, Gabon, Guinea Bissau, Sierra Leone and Tanzania. Furthermore, the ANOCA Secretariat continues to receive project progress reports from countries such as Angola, Chad, Malawi and Togo. Contracts have been signed with new applicants Botswana, Mauritius and Somalia in 2024 and they will receiving funds soon. While some NOCs have applied for funding to build their headquarters and their applications are currently under review, others like Cameroon, Mozambique and Namibia have applied to renovate theirs. Meanwhile, NOCs of Lesotho, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda and Zambia are fine-tuning their applications. To date, more than $600,000 have been granted to 14 NOCs for their headquarters project and more will be allocated by the end of 2024. An architecture firm was recruited to provide the Association with technical support. Though only Eswatini has officially commissioned its NOC headquarters, many others have already been completed, while construction works are well underway in some other countries. For its effective implementation, the project receives significant financial and technical support from the IOC, thanks to the strong resolve of its president, Dr Thomas Bach. The required procedure for the NOC headquarters construction project is as follows:
An initial list of beneficiaries is drafted by the ANOCA EXCO. A copy of the list is sent to all identified NOCs, with a view to collecting all the necessary information. These NOCs must provide a land title of the land on which they intend to build their headquarters. The complete plans are then sent to all NOCs, together with the cost estimates, so that each can submit proposals from 3 (three) construction companies, with completion deadlines. NOCs verify if the plans comply with the architectural standards in force in their countries. A contract is then signed between ANOCA and beneficiary NOCs to ensure proper use of allocated funds. ANOCA also earmarks a small amount of money for utilities. After this stage, NOCs sign a building contract at a fixed rate to avoid increases in price. NOCs also choose the building control office to ensure the building is of good quality and complies with the cost estimates.
