AIFF ExCo ratifies Vision India relaunch

The Asian Football Confederation's Vision Asia project is set for a new start in India after the AIFF Executive Committee ratified the re-launch of the Vision India development programme for the districts/cities of Mumbai, Pune and Chandigarh under a new format.

In a letter dated May 26 to the AFC, the AIFF also informs that it will relaunch the AFC-sanctioned development program in Aizawl (Mizoram) and Cochin (Kerala) next.

Earlier, in April 2010, the AIFF had nominated the five cities to the AFC to restart its Vision Asia programme focusing on projects at the district or city level instead of the state level as was under the previous practice which had failed in Delhi, Kerala and Tamil Nadu with only Manipur being the exception.

This has been the case because India has large states and implementing the AFC Vision Asia programme at the state level has been difficult to impossible. The AIFF now hopes that the format change to the smaller district/city focus will resolve the problem and yield results from the program.

Before the relaunch is a go, the AFC Vision Asia Committee will have to deliberate and endorse the AIFF's decision in its meeting on June 18 before the matter has to be finally approved by the AFC Executive Committee in a meeting scheduled on July 29.

The relaunch is then expected to start with a pre-assessment visit probably in mid-year followed by an assessment visit in the last quarter of the year.

Vision Asia is a continental development programme of the Asian Football Confederation focusing on all important elements of football including competition, refereeing, marketing and media which has been launched in selected countries across the continent.