ICC Annual Conference: The ICC on Tuesday granted membership status to three new countries during the ongoing ICC Annual Conference in Birmingham. Cambodia and Uzbekistan from Asia and Cote d’Ivoire from Africa have been granted Associate Membership status. This brings the total number of ICC members to 108 countries, including 96 associates.
A key criterion for obtaining ICC membership is contained in the clause ‘Partnership and Domestic Structure’ of Section 2.1(d) of the ICC Membership Criteria. It requires meeting minimum team requirements for 50-over and 20-over tournaments.
The two Asian teams take the total number of Asian countries to 25 while Cote d’Ivoire is the 21st country in Africa.
The Uzbekistan Cricket Federation’s (CFU) women’s cricket scheme consists of 15 teams playing competitions organized with a pathway program for their under-19 and under-17 players.
Cote d’Ivoire is the grassroots program of the Cricket Federation. It also runs a National League senior men’s competition with 8 teams. In particular, it has taken several initiatives to develop women’s cricket, including the appointment of a women’s board member to drive this agenda.
Ukraine’s application postponed
The Cricket Association of Cambodia (CAC) was awarded membership under the Board. A T20 tournament with eight teams is also underway in November 2022, while indoor cricket activities are expected to resume in eight schools. Cambodia has 14 registered teams that regularly play men’s senior domestic cricket in the country.
The Council has stated that Ukraine’s application for ICC membership is deferred until cricket activity within the country can safely resume, but the ICC supports the Ukraine Cricket Federation through this process.
