He offered his thanks during the 48th ordinary session of the ANOCA Executive Committee, which took place in Victoria Falls, with Hlongwane welcoming the organisation to the country.

“This Executive Meeting comes at a critical time on the Olympic calendar, when athletes worldwide are focusing on their final preparations for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games,” said Hlongwane.

“I have been made aware that discussions in your meeting will in part focus on how best to support African athletes in their final preparations and to lay the foundation for preparations of our African athletes in future.

“We applaud your continued efforts to uplift our continent through the activities of the Olympic programme.”

To date, ANOCA have invested a total of $505,000 (£345,000/€453,000) to help with the preparation of 101 elite African athletes who are due to compete at the Games.

The meeting, which was chaired by vice-president Mustapha Berraf in the absence of ANOCA President Lassana Palenfo, also saw the organisation praise the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) for offering to sponsor 50 African athletes.

Each of the selected athletes will be able to train at USOC’s Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs ahead of Rio 2016. 

The initiative comes as part of a partnership agreement between USOC and ANOCA, which has been in place since 2011.

World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) director general David Howman, attending the meeting, outlined new measures taken to combat doping which were approve by the ANOCA Executive Committee.

The meeting also saw Algeria’s preparations to host the African Youth Games in 2018 receive praise.

The event is scheduled to take place in the country's capital Algiers.