Golf: Nigeria Budgets ₦547m As 30 African Nations Storm Abuja For AACT 2026

Nigeria will host no fewer than 30 African countries for the 2026 All Africa Challenge Trophy, the continent’s premier biennial women’s amateur team golf championship, with organisers projecting a ₦547 million budget for the event and the subsequent Nigeria Ladies’ Open Championship.

Dr Lami Onayi Ahmed, President of the Ladies’ Golf Association of Nigeria and Chairman of the Local Organising Committee for AACT Nigeria 2026, said on Tuesday that preparations had moved from planning to execution ahead of the November 2–7 championship in Abuja.

She spoke at a world press briefing at the TYB International Resort & Country Club, Abuja, where she said the tournament would offer Nigeria an opportunity to demonstrate its ability to stage major international sporting events while promoting the country’s hospitality, culture and women’s sport.

“The All Africa Challenge Trophy is the premier biennial women’s amateur team championship on the African continent,” Ahmed said. “It brings together some of Africa’s finest women amateur golfers and provides an important pathway for the development and international exposure of women and young female golfers.”

The championship will be staged at the IBB International Golf and Country Club, Abuja, and will feature three competition rounds, cultural activities, delegates’ engagements, prize presentation and a closing banquet. Ahmed said the event would be followed immediately by the Nigeria Ladies’ Open Championship, scheduled for November 7–10, creating what she described as an extended international women’s golf experience in the Federal Capital Territory.

Africa headed for Abuja

Organisers said several countries had already confirmed participation, while engagements were continuing with other national golf federations across the continent.
Ahmed said Abuja would become a meeting point for women in African sport during the championship week, with teams, officials, delegates and supporters expected to travel into Nigeria. “Africa is coming to Nigeria,” she said. “We want every participating country to arrive in Nigeria and feel welcome from the moment they enter Abuja until the moment they depart.”

Each country is expected to be represented by three players and a captain, giving a minimum official team delegation of four per participating nation. Organisers also expect visiting supporters and guests from the participating countries.

The competition will be contested over three rounds as a team event, with results counting towards the World Amateur Golf Ranking, according to the tournament’s Technical Director, Julius Akinwumi Fadairo.

He explained that unlike regular individual golf tournaments, the AACT is a contest between nations, likening it to the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in football.
“Players are playing for their country, not themselves,” Fadairo said. “It is a competition amongst nations.”

Budget covers two events

Fadairo said the ₦547 million budget was not a prize fund but a hosting provision covering the AACT and the Nigeria Ladies’ Open Championship.
According to him, the expenditure will cover accommodation, transport and other logistics for participating delegations, with the Transcorp Hilton Abuja expected to host teams from the approximately 30 countries, alongside the operational requirements of the two tournaments.

“When the President mentions the budget, she was talking about what goes into hosting the tournament,” Fadairo said. “For AACT, it is not about prize money; it is the trophy that you are entitled to hold for the next two years.”

He added that support for the championship would not be limited to cash contributions, noting that institutions and individuals could provide services and professional expertise in kind to offset parts of the cost.

Organisers declare readiness.

Ahmed said Nigeria was “absolutely” ready to host the tournament, with the Local Organising Committee setting up functional teams to coordinate major aspects of the championship.

She said organisers were working with the Federal Capital Territory Administration, security agencies, corporate organisations and other stakeholders to deliver a championship that would meet international expectations.
“Nigeria has been entrusted with the responsibility of hosting Africa’s premier women’s amateur golf championship,” Ahmed said. “Our ambition is very simple: to deliver a world-class championship that Nigeria and Africa will be proud of.”