05 Mar 2015

Etudiant Medical Aid Scheme has come to the rescue of cash-strapped Private Tertiary Institutions Association (PTIA) by sponsoring it to the tune of P70 000.

The donation, which will run for a year and is subject to increase in the coming years, provided there would be good business, was made on March 4 at Botho University where eight sporting members of PTIA had congregated.

This sponsorship, which has been described as generous and opportune, will assist the eight-member association to host its various sporting activities which are lined up in its calendar of events for this year.  

Etudiant Medical Aid Scheme is a local medical aid company specialising in medical aid cover for students.

Giving a keynote address at the launch of the sponsorship, the president of Botswana Chess Federation, Tshenolo Maruatona said the sponsors should be applauded for their noble gesture and determination for having seen it fit to choose PTIA among other organisations especially during these trying and challenging economic times.

He regretted that it was usually difficult or hard to sponsor sporting activities at tertiary level noting that this has led to private tertiary institutions parting with sporting activities immediately they leave secondary school because such activities were not adequately catered for in private institutions unlike in government establishments.

Maruatona therefore said the sponsorship money should be used prudently while at the same time sounded a warning to athletes not to advocate for the larger portion of the money to be used as prize money as there were other areas within the sporting administration which equally needed the little share for the activities to run.

The chess boss further said the recipient should conduct itself in a way that the sponsor would be proud to be associated with and thus enhance  and further their relationship for future endevours. In that way, he said, this would attract more sponsors into their fold.

In his speech, director of Etudiant Medical Aid Scheme, Kabo Letlhare-Wastikc said though his company, which would be turning five this year, was still relatively young and trying to set its foot in the market, it did not shy away when approached for the sponsorship.

He said since it was dealing with the insurance of students from early age up to tertiary level it therefore seized the opportunity to be involved in sporting agreement with this well-organised association.

Letlhare-Wastikc said although he hoped to make business in this partnership, he however felt the need to plough back into the very people who are his clients. Speaking at the same event, president of PITA, Keorapetse Setlhare said given business challenges, sponsorship was not easy to come by. BOPA