UNAF decided to cancel this edition of the tournament on 15 January 2023, citing the low numbers of countries participating and low interest between members associations.
Morocco withdrew before the cancelation of the tournament and therefore wouldn't have been able to defend their title.
on 10 January 2023, Morocco announced its withdrawal from the competition citing the time schedule as they already have a number of foreign camps and tournaments against European teams they will be participating against as preparation for their 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup debut.
[5] on 15 January Tunisia's non-participation became official as the Tunisian football federation declined participation due to lack of preparation as the team wasn't prepared to participate internationally.
After Morocco withdrew, UNAF tried to invite guest teams, mainly CECAFA members Tanzania who finished as runners-up in the previous edition and Kenya.