JOHANNESBURG – Rugby Africa on Wednesday announced the appointment of Maha Zaoui as Women’s Rugby Manager and Mudiwa Mundawarara as Referee Manager.
Both newly-created positions are key strategic pillars for actively driving the expansion of rugby in Africa.
Khaled Babbou, Rugby Africa president said: “We are very happy to strengthen our team of staff with two experienced and dedicated members. I have no doubt that the newly appointed managers will make a significant difference given their background of expertise and strong potential of the roles.
“We are at a tipping point where African Rugby is becoming more visible and to become a serious player on the global stage as well. Women’s Rugby is a game changer and one our strategic priorities of Rugby Africa where we can take leadership.”
As the new Women’s Rugby Manager Zaoui will lead the strategic and operational development of female rugby with the goals to further increase the participation levels overall and to accelerate the evolution of the high-performance game.
She is well known in the rugby world and has been a board member of the Tunisian Rugby Union since 2005 where she was charged with women’s rugby development. In 2018, she received a leadership scholarship from World Rugby and obtained a master’s degree in Sports Organisations Management with a thesis on the development of women’s rugby in Africa which was shortlisted for the Madella Prize.
Zaoui said: “I am extremely honoured to take on women’s rugby development on the continental level. It is one of the key priorities of the confederation and an area where Africa can apply best international standards and make it one of our major strengths and differentiation factors.”