29 Aug 2018

Region 5 Youth Games are intended to give young athletes from the region an international sporting experience.

Speaking at the 100 days countdown on August 29, Assistant Minister of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development, Dikgang Makgalemele said the country has invested in sport infrastructure development in order to give local athletes access to world class, safe and secure facilities.

“This is why we have previously managed to host successful regional, continental and world events,” he said.

Botswana will from December host athletes from 10 Africa Union Sport Council (AUSC) Region 5 member states. The countries include Angola, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The youth games are expected to feature 10 sporting codes including basketball, boxing, netball, volleyball, athletics,  athletics for the blind, football, judo, gymnastics, swimming and tennis.

Makgalemele noted that the Games were held on a rotational basis, and that since inception in 2004 they had provided a platform for identification and nurturing of talent among the youth.

He emphasised that Botswana planned to use sports as a tool to transform the lives of its people regardless of age, gender, physical ability, religion, socio-economic status or geographic location.

He added that  Batswana would like to see the Games succeed and leave a memorable legacy.

For his part, Gaborone city mayor, Kagiso Thutlwe encouraged Batswana to continue with their spirit of being good hosts, noting that the country has hosted many sporting events and that Batswana had never shied away from demonstrating their Botho.

“It is always important to realise that when we host people, it is something that is going to be held up by those that we are welcoming,” he said.

The Local Organising Committee chairperson, Labbeaus Peloewetse thanked the assistant minister for encouraging the private sector to sponsor the Games,  saying it would be important for their success. ENDS