THIERRY Ntwali has been named as the new International Tennis Federation (ITF) development officer for the East African region.

Ntwali, who doubles as the executive director for the National Olympic Committee (RNOC), replaces Zimbabwe’s Prince Madema who recently stepped down.

According to Frank Cauraud, ITF’s officer in charge of administration and development projects, the Rwandan beat 19 other contestants for the job.

Like Madema, Ntwali will be based in Bujumbura, Burundi- the venue for the East African Tennis Development Centre.

The East African region incorporates ten countries namely Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Sudan, Ethiopia, Comoros, Seychelles and Djibouti.

Upon his appointment, Ntwali said, "I’m humbled by the faith entrusted in me by the ITF and one of my goals is to make sure the region produces some of the best players on the continent.”

In 1990, the first ITF development officer was appointed to Africa, but since then, the continent boasts of ten regional development officers.

Among other things, Ntwali will be charged with advising national associations and helping in the implementation of projects which form part of the ITF Development Programme, evaluating and monitoring the use of funds and resources allocated to the national associations for various programmes.

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