THE Guyana Football Federation (GFF) intends to develop a comprehensive compensation policy, consistent with international best practices, which will cover key areas such as out-of-pocket allowances, stipends, match fees, and bonuses for the senior women’s football team. According to the GFF, this policy is expected to be fully implemented ahead of the FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifiers in November this year.

The proposed policy comes hot on the heels of the senior women’s football team, Lady Jags, calling on the local governing body to treat them the same as the men’s side. They dispatched a letter to First Lady Arya Ali and Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Charles Ramson Jr asking them to intervene on their behalf.

The Golden Jaduars are given remuneration and pay, but the Lady Jags have never received anything, although they are more successful than the Golden Jaguars on the international stage over the years.

In their letter to Mrs Ali and Minister Ramson, the Lady Jags said they are “writing to express our frustrations around the unfair and inequitable distribution of resources and support provided the female participants in comparison to our male counterparts”.

“We feel the impact of years of systemic bias. We have been relegated to second-class citizens because of our gender even though our records and accomplishments are amongst the best across the Caribbean region”, the Lady Jags said in a signed letter by members of the team.

The release from the GFF pointed out that it “acknowledges the concerns raised by team in a letter shared with the Government of Guyana and the media last week.”

According to GFF president Wayne Forde, “It is regrettable that this highly valued group of players did not avail themselves of the opportunity to raise their concerns directly with the Federation’s executive or dministration.”

Forde said GFF recognises the seriousness of the issues raised and is deeply concerned that some of Guyana’s most valued players feel disenfranchised in this way. He further pointed out that “the Executive Committee will be reaching out to the players to meet and discuss the matter in the coming days.”

The GFF release also referred to the relaunch of women’s football in 2017, pointing out that a critical element of the re-launch was the establishment of the International Support Group (ISG), based in North America that serves as the interface between the Federation and the international coaching staff and players.

The ISG, it said, is composed of eminently qualified persons and plays a critical role in identification and selection of international players for the national women’s team as well as coordinating team camps and preparations.