The Africa Women Cup of Nations has opened, with the host nation Cameroonhoping to use the football tournament as a springboard to build its tourism industry.
Security was tight for Sunday’s opening ceremony at the Ahmadou Ahidjo stadium in Yaoundé, which was attended by the country’s autocratic president, Paul Biya, and his wife, Chantal. Cameroon’s army is battling Boko Haram in the north and there are concerns that militants could strike in the capital.
Staging the 12th African women’s tournament in Cameroon has been a pet project of Biya, who has pledged to improve infrastructure and attract investment, but has attracted criticism for allowing rampant corruption to hinder the country’s development.
Speeches and banners around the stadium praised Biya for his “major accomplishments” in placing sport at the “heart” of government. The president has led Cameroon since 1982, controversially scrapping presidential term limits in 2008, putting him in the club of Africa’s “presidents for life”.
Before the tournament the government built a stadium in the city of Limbe and increased the capacity of the Yaoundé stadium to 40,000.
Simon Faustin Mvongo, who oversaw the refurbishment, said ticket prices had been capped at 1,000 Cameroonian francs (£1.30) to make the event more affordable. By 12pm on Saturday – three and a half hours before the opening match, Cameroon v Egypt, kicked off – it was almost full.
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