08 May 2019

Minister of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development, Tshekedi Khama, has applauded sponsors of this years’ Union Federation of Africa Karate (UFAK) Championships.

The World Karate Federation (WKF) sanctioned tournament played under the auspices of the Africa Karate Federation (AKF) is billed for July in Gaborone.

 “All eyes are now on Botswana, as we now get closer to the championships that will see 30 African countries converge in Gaborone. Pulling together is imperative if we are to host successful games for Africa. Your support and partnership with the the Local Organising Committee will thus undoubtedly contribute immensely to that success and for that, I am truly grateful.

I applaud you all for be the first batch of sponsors to raise their hands and reaffirm your spirit of benevolence for the love of the country. May your seeds grow beyond anyone’s comprehension,” he said.

Khama expressed hope that the act of kindness and patriotism inspired many entities to emulate them and put their best foot forward in terms of supporting the championships.

“As outlined in the National Vision 2036, sport is a sector that has potential to contribute to the economy and can be used to propel the pride of our nation and promote unity. 

If we are united in this purpose, we should have a self-sustaining sport industry, producing more globally competitive sportspersons,” he said.

He said the ministry supported the championships to the tune of P3.2 million out of which P2 million went directly to Team Botswana preparations, with P1.2 million going towards hosting. 

“The latter will entail various milestones such as marketing and publicity, build up events to the launch, opening and closing ceremonies, hospitality, logistics and others. 

The LOC has indicated that they could do with a bit more financial aid and I implore potential partners to heed their call and assist in that regard. Today literally marks 36 days before the championships. I am pleased that the LOC continues to work day and night to ensure that there are no glitches in the games. 

Often times events of this magnitude come with challenges that could be prevented through a robust project plan that clearly highlights all risks and their mitigation measures, some of which require finance whilst others generally just require more hands, through services,” he added.

For his part, Dr Edwin Dikoloti, who was introduced as new chairperson of the LOC said hosting of the event was repositioning Botswana as a sport destination of choice. He commended minister Khama for being supportive to the LOC and said he had given the committee a task of making Botswana proud. 

He said that responsibility did not lie only with the LOC but the nation at large as a collective delivery had the potential to earn the sort after national stripes.

BOKA won the bid to host the tournament after Botswana National Sports Commission (BNSC) gave their bid document the nod.

The tournament will see 30 countries descending on Botswana ahead of the historic 2020 Tokyo Japan Olympics where Karate will be represented. 

BOKA and Botswana National Olympic Committee (BNOC) will also use the tournament as a yard stick to gauge their potential ahead of the global spectacle. ENDs