RABAT, July 16, 2019 - The African Games "Rabat 2019" scheduled for August 19 to 31 will be organized in the cities of Salé, Rabat, Temara, Casablanca, El Jadida, Mohammedia and Benslimane.

These cities were chosen because the level of their sports facilities and accommodation sites are adequate to host the various disciplines programmed.

This edition will feature the participation of 6,500 athletes, 1,500 technical executives and heads of delegations, as well as 2,000 volunteers who will accompany the participants throughout the competition.

About 15,000 people are expected, according to Morocco's Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr. Rachid Talbi Alami, who was speaking at a press conference which had the following dignitaries in attendance; Joao Manuel da Costa Alegre Afonso - 1st vice-president of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) and chairman of the coordinating committee of the 12th African Games, Ahmed Nasser - President of the Union of African Sports Confederations, Abdelatif Abbad - Director General of Publishing, and some presidents of the Royal Moroccan sports federations.

"The Kingdom of Morocco is facing a major challenge by organizing and preparing in eight months, the 12th African Games," said the Minister.

Upon request from the African Union, Morocco agreed to host this major continental sporting event, said Talbi Alami, during the press conference dedicated to the presentation of the Games. He noted that the authorities concerned have, from initial preparations for the Games, achieved a progress rate of over 95%.

Morocco had signed the Memorandum of Understanding for the organization of the Games in December 2018 at the request of the African Union, the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa, the Union of Sports Confederations African Games and the Organizing Committee for African Games, following the withdrawal of Equatorial Guinea as host of the continental competition.

The Minister also noted that Morocco will greatly benefit from the African Games, explaining that the facilities set up for this event will allow the Kingdom offer athletes high level training in different disciplines. He underlined the determination of the Kingdom and other partners to make the African Games a qualifying tournament for the Olympic Games or a step to collecting qualifying points for the Olympiad, so as to attract the greatest number distinguished athletes at the African level.

On his part, Mr. da Costa Alegre Afonso said that Morocco is a leading country in the field of sports and has the necessary capabilities to make the African Games a continental celebration par excellence, expressing satisfaction with the cooperation between the different actors involved.

This year's edition will be launched with a new generation of games, since it will include 17 qualifying disciplines for the Olympic Games to be held in 2020 in Tokyo.

At this occasion, the organizing committee unveiled the mascot of the 12th African Games, representing a "lion of the Atlas", while Barid Al-Maghrib issued two postage stamps dedicated to this competition.

The African Games are organized every four years. The capital of Congo Brazzaville hosted the first edition in 1965 and the last in 2015, while that of 2023 will be hosted by Ghana.