Egypt defend African crown in Tunis, Tunisia; direct LA28 Olympic berth for champions
Egypt defend African crown as continent’s best converge on Tunisia – FIVB
The 2026 CAVB Men’s African Nations Championship will be held in Tunis, Tunisia, from 15 to 25 September.
A total of 16 national teams will assemble for the continental showpiece, featuring hosts Tunisia, Congo Democratic Republic, Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Cameroon, Rwanda, Chad, Morocco, Kenya, Ghana, Gambia, Nigeria, Central African Republic, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
Ten of the 16 participating nations enter the tournament backed by significant financial and technical investments from the FIVB Volleyball Empowerment Projects Platform. This strategic support is designed to elevate national volleyball frameworks across Africa through structural upgrades, high-level coaching appointments, essential equipment resources and knowledge transfer initiatives.
Within CAVB Zone I, three member federations are actively leveraging this support to build competitive rosters. Host nation Tunisia stand as the largest beneficiary of coaching allocation in the region, securing $330,000 to appoint Camilo Placi through the current season, building upon an earlier $81,000 equipment grant executed between 2017 and 2018.
Morocco continue along their development pipeline with an ongoing $199,500 coaching project led by senior national team head coach Sandro Passaro, supplemented by $104,500 in equipment support and $18,000 in knowledge transfer funding through 2025.
Meanwhile, Libya have been newly approved for $84,000 in application-based assistance to complement previous equipment benefits valued at $76,500 through 2022.
In CAVB Zone IV, strategic investment continues to yield targeted development across multiple age brackets and national teams. Congo Democratic Republic maintain an active $10,500 project focused on their men’s U21 and women’s U20 programmes under coach Yende Tiadjoue Lavoisier, backed by $110,500 in equipment upgrades extending through 2025.
Central African Republic have enlisted coach Olivier Batonga for the current season, backed by $31,500 in coaching support, adding to $18,500 in equipment resources and $6,000 in knowledge transfer grants.
Chad have successfully concluded their $35,500 targeted support allocation, adding to $31,500 in equipment investments acquired earlier in 2017 and 2020.
In CAVB Zone V, traditional titan Egypt have received the second-highest total package in the confederation, incorporating $304,500 in coaching value to retain Marco Bonitta for the senior men’s team through the current season and Percy Oncken for the U19 programme through 2027, alongside $12,000 for knowledge transfer initiatives through 2026.
Rwanda have recently been approved for $21,000 in application-based support, extending earlier grants of $88,000 in equipment and $24,000 in knowledge transfer between 2018 and 2025.
Representing Zone II, Gambia received $84,000 in coaching support to secure the expertise of coach Fausto Polidori from 2023 to 2025, adding to $139,000 in equipment and $30,000 in knowledge transfer grants provided between 2017 and 2025.
Finally, Zone VI’s Zimbabwe round out the supported field with an ongoing $21,000 coaching project under coach Itsanang Abu-Basuthu, building upon prior investments of $47,000 in equipment and $12,000 in knowledge transfer from 2017 to 2024.
With 62% of the field benefiting directly from Volleyball Empowerment, the gap between established giants and emerging programmes has narrowed considerably. Targeted technical and financial backing provided to the national programmes has contributed to a competitive shift across CAVB.
Reigning champions Egypt and 11-time continental champions Tunisia enter as the prime candidates to conquer the podium, closely challenged by regional powerhouses Algeria and Cameroon.
However, with substantial coaching overhauls and technical support, Libya – bronze medallists in 2023 – and a rapidly developing Morocco loom as dangerous dark-horse contenders capable of offering an interesting narrative as the competition takes place.
The champions of the event will secure a direct quota berth to compete at the LA28 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Furthermore, the top three finishing teams in Tunisia will earn direct qualification slots to represent Africa at the 2027 Men’s World Cup, hosted in Poland.
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