The Confederation of African
Football (CAF) has given Guinea the green light to host their home games after
the West African nation was declared 'Ebola Free' by the World's Health
Organization (WHO).
CAF General Secretary, Hicham El
Amrani notified the president of the Guinean Football Federation, Salifou
Camara, on Monday 4 January 2016, about the lifting of the ban that prevented
the member association from hosting international matches on its territory due
to the outbreak of the Ebola virus.
Part of the letter as quoted by
cafonline.com
CAF has learned with joy and relief
the announcement by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 29 December 2015,
officially confirming that Guinea is now declared Ebola free. CAF thereby
confirms lifting the ban on the organization of continental matches in Guinea,
and for all competitions organized by CAF.
The ban had been in effect since
August 2014. Guinea has been hosting their home games in Morocco.
The last game Guinea played in
Casablanca was qualifying match for the 2018 World Cup against Namibia where
the West Africans triumphed 2-0 before winning 1-0 in Windhock days later.
The previous ban, not only applied
to the national team, but also the clubs that played in the CAF Champions and
Confederations Cup tournaments.
The end of Ebola transmission in
Guinea marks an important milestone in the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.
The original chain of transmission
started two years ago in Gueckedou, Guinea in late December 2013 and drove the
outbreak which spread to neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone and, ultimately,
by land and air travel to seven other countries.
More than 11 000 people were killed
from over 28 000 reported cases.
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