ABIDJAN (Cote d'Ivoire) - The race for the FIBA U18 Women's AfroBasket, which is set to take place in Côte d'Ivoire later this year, begins this month. Six cities have already been identified as hosts for the highly anticipated qualifying tournaments, which will take place across six zones.
Zone 4
The action runs from May to mid-July, with Zone 4 kicking off the competition from Thursday 28 May to 4 June in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.
The hosts and Chad have already qualified for the women's qualifiers, which are returning following the withdrawal of participants last year, leading to Cameroon's direct qualification.
Cameroon went on to make a historic debut, claiming the bronze medal at the expense of Uganda. This not only saw them reach the podium on their first attempt, but also secure their place at this year's final in Côte d'Ivoire.
Zone 5
Malabo will pave the way for Kampala, as the Ugandan capital prepares to host six nations in the Zone 5 qualifiers.
Having already secured their place in the final by reaching the semi-final of the 2024 edition in Johannesburg, South Africa, Uganda will now play host to the competition.
The Zone 5 qualifiers will take place from Thursday, 14 June to Sunday, 21 June and will host teams from Burundi, Rwanda, Egypt, Tanzania, Kenya and South Sudan.
In 2024, Uganda beat Rwanda in the regional qualifier final to be crowned the best team, and were joined by Rwanda and Egypt, who had already secured their places through their performance in the previous edition.
Zone 5 is expected to be tough, with Kenya expected to perform well after making history by qualifying for their first FIBA U16 Women's AfroBasket in September last year.
However, it was Egypt who won the continental title — their first in competition history — and with some of those players expected to feature, they are one of the favourites to join Uganda in Côte d'Ivoire for the final. As one of the most competitive zones in the region, no team should be underrated.
Zone 1
Meanwhile, the Zone 1 qualifiers are scheduled for July. Tunis, Tunisia is set to host Algeria, as well as Morocco and Libya, should they confirm their participation.
The hosts qualified for the last Final alongside Morocco, finishing in eighth and ninth place respectively.
Zone 3
The Zone 3 qualifiers are set to take place in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, from Saturday 4 to Friday 17 July.
The hosts will face Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana.
Nigeria secured a direct ticket to the continental showpiece after settling for silver in Johannesburg and denying Côte d'Ivoire a home victory in 2024.
Zone 2
The schedule for FIBA Africa Zone 2, comprising Cape Verde, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, Sierra Leone and The Gambia, is yet to be confirmed.
Nine-time champions Mali have already secured their place in the final round in Abidjan, where they will be looking to extend their record.
Zone 6
Although the venue for the Zone 6 qualifiers has been confirmed as Gaborone, Botswana, the official date is yet to be announced.
Both Angola and Zimbabwe are expected to join the qualifiers, looking to improve on their performances in 2024, when Angola finished sixth and Zimbabwe 12th.
Zone 7
Zone 7 is set to take place in Antananarivo, Madagascar, in June. The exact date and details of the other contestants are yet to be confirmed.
FIBA