GEORGETOWN (Guyana) — With a healthy male basketball program already rendering results, the Guyana Amateur Basketball Association (GABF) is giving the final touches to a long-term development plan for their female basketball, with the goal of having a national U19 team that may represent them internationally on 2024 and in the future.

Federation President Michael Singh and his staff have set out to convene, through the press, social media, and recruitments at schools, more than a hundred local young players to start the project this summer.

“We're looking for 150 (girls and young women) throughout the nation, 11 years old and up,” said Singh to FIBA.basketball. “This is the first (camp) of this magnitude. This is a five-year project to bring standards and emotions to the female program.”

“In five years, we should have a solid U19 team that represents Guyana. We started with 150 girls, in the second year we cut 50, then 50 more in the third year, 20 in the fourth year, and 10 in the fifth. In the sixth year, the 15 and 16-year-old girls may play for Guyana in the U19 or in the senior national team, and even get scholarships,” he explained.

The program will follow participants throughout the year before making the cuts. It also hopes to be able to help them as best as they can to avoid any interruptions in the development process.

“We’ll have a database and an assigned coach. We’ll monitor them and help them with what we can. Basketball won't be a (financial) responsibility for the family, thanks to the help given by GABF,” Singh assured.

The Federation rests assured with their efforts focused on the female categories, standing upon the recent success of their senior men’s national team, who won the Caribbean Basketball Confederation Championship in 2018.

“I believe that the men’s program is doing well. We won the CBC. More men from overseas are interested in representing their country. On the other hand, women have terribly lost. So, it's an even commitment to make our women relevant in the CBC.”

Singh also announced the start of the championship tournament of Guyana’s national clubs league in the month of July. “There are also some 3x3 on the horizon. Our sub-associations have the task of running the tournaments. Right now, they're in the process of an election.”

FIBA