The much-awaited Confederation of Electronic Sports Africa (CESA) was founded on Tuesday September 26, 2023 in Dakar, Senegal.
The formation of CESA comes following an invitation sent by the Senegalese Ministry of Sports to 45 delegates from African countries mandated by their respective states, the Constitutive General Assembly was held on September 25 and 26, 2023 in Dakar, ending with a unanimous vote by the countries to create this continental organization for the promotion, training and development of Electronic Games & Immersive Sports and their related activities.
Six nations namely Senegal, Nigeria, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Ivory Coast and Mauritius constitute the organizing committee for the successful foundation laid to the birth of Confederation of Electronic Sports Africa.
Chief Executive Officer of Africa Development Solutions (ADS) Group, Mr. Samba Bathily was unanimously voted to become the continental organization's first-ever President.
The mission of the Confederation of Electronic Sports Africa (CESA) is, among other things, to coordinate, develop and initiate any action to represent, educate, train, disseminate and promote the practice of Esport throughout Africa.
CESA has a thirteen-member committee which ten (10) countries were revealed at the colorful event with three nations to be announced later. Comoros, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Congo, Mali, Mauritius, Nigeria, Ghana, Madagascar and Somalia are the ten countries named onto the Executive Committee of CESA.
The continental organization has divided the countries into six zones: North Zone, West Zone, West Zone B, Central Zone, Central East Zone and South Zone.
Ghana scored mark at the three-day conference when President of Ghana Esports Federation, Igor Boumekpor was elected the Vice President of West Zone B of the Confederation of Electronic Sports Africa.
In his closing speech, Mr. Samba Bathily, the newly appointed Chairman of CESA, pledged to develop Gaming and Esport activities across the continent. Through his ADS Group, he announced that 50% of the cost of setting up "HP Gaming Garage" training centers would initially be financed in one country in each zone of the The Confederation of Electronic Sports Africa (CESA)
The event attracted several personalities, including Mr. Souleymane Astou Diagne (Director of the Cabinet of the Minister of Communication, Telecommunications and the Digital Economy), Mr. Ousseynou Dieng (Director of Communication at the Ministry of Communications, Telecommunications and the Digital Economy), Mr. Cheikh Bakhoum (Managing Director of Sénégal Numérique SA, the first partner of the Fédération Sénégalaise Des Jeux Électroniques, currently CONAPES)
The presence of the Orange Middle East Africa Group, represented by Mr. Issa Sene, Sponsorship Director for the zone, who was present throughout the proceedings.
The Managing Director of Smart Africa, Mr. Lancina Koné and Mr. Amadou Gallo Fall President of the Basketball Africa League (BAL) and Senior Vice President of the NBA, who delivered messages of support to the participants. Mathieu Faye Vice-President of FIBA Africa and President of the West Africa Zone and Mayank Dhingra (Senior Education Business Leader Europe, Africa and Middle East at HP).
The Constitutive General Assembly for the establishment of a Pan-African Confederation around Esport and its related activities and professions was organized under the aegis of His Excellency, Mr. Macky SALL, President of the Republic of Senegal, the Ministry of Communication, des Télécommunications et de l'Économie Numérique de la République du Sénégal and the sponsorship of the ADS Group, and by Fédération Sénégalaise des Jeux Électroniques et Sports Immersifs, currently Comité National de Promotion du E-Sport (CONAPES).
Institutions such as Unesco, HP Education Middle East and Africa, VISA, FIBA Africa, the Sport Council of the African Union, the Senegalese Basketball Federation, the Senegalese Olympic committee, as well as major global esport institutions, including several personalities from the world of video games, took part in the event.
