President Paul Kagame has praised FIFA’s efforts towards infrastructure development, saying the results under president Gianni Infantino “speak for themselves.” He made the comments on Tuesday, February 24 while commenting on the FIFA Forward programme, a development initiative launched in 2016 by the football governing body aiming to provide comprehensive funding, infrastructure, and technical support to 211 member associations and six confederations. “It is important for athletes to have access to higher qualify infrastructure because it supports elite training and competition,” Kagame said. “A decade later, the results speak for themselves. under [Infantino's] leadership, football has become more global than ever, and the investment and talent development is strong,” he added. ALSO READ: Kagame highlights football’s role in promoting peace FIFA Forward aims to foster global football growth by investing over $5 billion, building pitches, and supporting national team travel. The programme aims to increase investment, provide tailor-made support for local needs, and improve international competitiveness for all member associations. President Paul Kagame said that in Rwanda, the programme had helped to build an accommodation facility for the national football federation. FIFA Forward is also supporting the construction of pitches that meet FIFA standards. These are in Kigali, Rubavu, Rutsiro and Gicumbi. Since 2016, more than 2000 projects have been approved and benefited from FIFA Forward support. FIFA has always been a bridge between athletes, communities and cultures from all over the world, making football more inclusive,” Kagame said.
