Raised in the small town of Ruacana, Samuel Nghipandulwa has signed up for an international football refereeing development programme organised by Tournaments Abroad. "I am going to do my best and show the world that Namibia has quality upcoming referees", says 23-year-old Samuel Nghipandulwa. He is expected to be part of the International Youth Development tournament - the Gothia Cup China. The intense coaching and development activities will be carried out during the Gothia Cup China held from the 10th to the 16th of August 2019 in Qingdao, China. Participants will be assigned to officiate the tournament matches as part of their assessment. Tournament Abroad is an independent non-profit organisation and provides youth football tournaments with referees from across the world and offers them exclusive access to coaching and development opportunities supported by referee coaches and instructors, who are or have been active in comparable functions in FIFA, UEFA or National Associations. In an exclusive interview with nbc sport, Nghipandulwa spoke of his ambitions in football. "My passion for sport began when I was 11 years old and all I wanted was to be a referee. This is a big achievement in my life. I have been praying for this to work with referees from different countries. It means a lot to me. It is a big opportunity; I am just very happy. I think I am a step closer to my goal" he said. At the age of 23, he boosts 7 years of experience as a referee of which 5 of those at national first division level and 2 years of experience in the Namibia Premier League. He is expected to be back in the country on the 17th of August.