World football governing body, Fifa and French news agency, Agence France-Presse (AFP) have partnered in a 2010 legacy initiative that will see more than 300 African football journalists receive specialized training ahead of the 2010 World Cup.

Reporters and photographers from all 53 countries in Africa will be invited to participate in a series of week-long courses provided by the AFP Foundation.

The initiative is part of Fifa’s Win in Africa with Africa project, launched after South Africa was chosen to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup four year ago.

The training will be given by AFP football correspondents and photographers working in Arabic, English, French and Portuguese.

"I firmly believe that the 2010 FIFA World Cup represents a unique opportunity to create positive social change across Africa” said Fifa President Joseph Blatter, who signed an agreement with AFP Foundation last year.

The courses will be scheduled to coincide with the qualifying rounds for the Fifa World Cup and the Africa Cup of Nations in the first and second halves of the year. Between these, the AFP Foundation will also provide online instruction via its website.

The EU Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid has promised financial support for the project, which should give a new impetus to relations between Europe and Africa.

The EU recognizes the important contribution that football can make to education and peace in Africa and signed a Memorandum of Understanding with FIFA to that effect in Berlin on 9 July 2006.

Set up in July 2007, the AFP Foundation has worked with a variety of partners, including the UN Development Programme and the European Reconstruction Agency.

Its most recent project was a ground-breaking course on objective reporting in conflict zones, delivered in Beirut last month.

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