The 83 year old Cameroonian dictator closed the 10th edition of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations yesterday in Yaoundé. The final game of the tournament which began on the 19^th of November 2016 was played on Saturday 03 December 2016 at the Yaoundé Ahmadou Ahidjo stadium.

The closing ceremony of the competition, which celebrated Africa’s rising fraternity, was presided over by President Paul BIYA, in the presence of Issa Hayatou, the President of the African Football Confederation amid heavy police crackdown on protesting university students in Anglophone Cameroon. This was followed by a nail-biting encounter between the Indomitable Lionesses of Cameroon and the Super Falcons of Nigeria. The defending champions pulled a narrow win (1-0). They sealed their eighth title through ace striker, Desire Oparanozie at the 84th minute.

Cameroon-born Issa Hayatou, President of the Confederation of African Football, paid homage to Paul BIYA for his tact, which facilitated the entire organization of the tourney in Cameroon. He symbolically passed the trophy to the Head of State who later handed it to the Nigerian captain, Rita Chikwelu. However, the international media focused its attention on the rapes, torture and massive arrests of students who organized a peaceful demonstration in British Southern Cameroons.

Eight teams, divided in two groups, participated in the 2016 Women’s AFCON. Cameroon, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Egypt challenged each other at the renovated Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium. The teams in Group B; Nigeria, Ghana, Mali, and Kenya played at the newly constructed Limbe Omnisports Stadium.