The Zonal football system, introduced by the Confederation of African Football in 2017, is intended to run regional qualifiers for continental youth championships.

This system, according to Mr Henry Asante Twum, Communication Director of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), is affecting the development of African football.

There are six zonal unions managing youth championship qualifiers and regional tournaments. They include Union Nord Africaine de Football (UNAF), West African Football Zone A (WAFU A), and West African Football Zone B (WAFU B).

The other three are the Council for East and Central Africa Football Association (CECAFA), Union des Federations de Football de l’Afrique Centrale (UNIFAC), and the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (COSAFA).

“This zonal thing is very problematic because you can’t find Ghana, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Niger, and Burkina Faso, and only two can qualify.

And that has been the problem for West Africa in the last seven years. That is hurting African football. African football is from West Africa,” he said in an interview with Fentuo Tahiru.

China Acheru, Programme Manager at Nigeria’s Wazobia FM, agreed in a separate interview, saying the zonal qualification system is making it harder for even Nigeria to qualify for the U-17 AFCON.

Ghana’s Black Starlets are a win away from reaching the CAF U-17 AFCON at the ongoing WAFU Zone B U-17 Championships.