MONASTIR (Tunisia) – The stage is set for the commencement of the 8th Edition of the 2023 FIBA U16 Women African Championship in Monastir, Tunisia.

This is the first time Tunisia is hosting this championship and they sure want to make an impact.

The closest Tunisia have come to the title were in Alexandria 2011 and Maputo 2013 when they lost 59-55 to Angola and 50-46 to Mozambique respectively.

At the Jamel Arena in Monsatir, the Tunisia women will be playing before their home fans cheering them all the way but they will have to be at their best to stop perennial champions Mali that have kept a stranglehold on the trophy since the inception of the championship in 2009.

Eight teams are drawn into two groups and will compete for honors in the championship. They are:

Egypt with five silver medals to their credit and the only nation that have come closest to nicking the title from Mali in 2013 but fell to a 62-61 score will not be an easy pie to contend with neither will Angola be.

The Angola women dominated the FIBA Africa Zone 6 qualifiers to reach this stage.

It was only in Maputo 2017 (Mozambique) and in 2021 (Egypt) that they failed to reach the Final. They were champions in Antananarivo 2013 and would be looking to return to the podium again.

Uganda put up a great show in the 2021 edition, finishing 4th place and they certainly will be looking to build on that this time around to be in the top four. 

Rwanda will be making their third appearance courtesy of their slim 66-65 victory over hard fighting Tanzania at the FIBA Africa Zone 5 Qualifiers for the 2023 U16 Women's African Championship held at the Lycée de Kigali (LDK) court in Kigali, Rwanda.

Twice they have been involved in the Final Round in Antananarivo 2015 and Kigali 2019 which ended at 9th and 6th positions respectively.

Guinea arrived Monastir on Tuesday looking confident to upset the form books. Having been awarded a wild card, they certainly will be seeking to make a statement to show that the decision is one that is worth it.

Games for the opening day are: RWANDA vs MOROCCO, ANGOLA vs EGYPT and TUNISIA vs GUINEA.

FIBA