02 Sep 2020

A joint task team on school sport has been established to develop a sustainable and inclusive model for competitive sport.

The task team, which is an initiative of the Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development (MYSC) and Basic Education (MoBE) came about due to challenges in the management of sport in schools.When launching the task team this week, youth and sport minister, Tumiso Rakgare, said in order to allow for a comprehensive review of the school sport programme, a decision was taken to suspend sports in schools this year.

He stated that there was need to review sport activities to ensure efficiency and cost effectiveness.
Eestablishment of the task team, he said, demonstrated commitment of the two ministries to sport. Rakgare said this would go a long way in improving not only competitiveness, but academic results as well.

“A holistic approach to school sport is necessary to exploit potential value of the education system in the society, particularly talent identification and nurturing,” he said.

The minister encouraged parents to acknowledge sport as a way of life that could enhance development of a child.

With a 12-week duration to deliver its mandate, Rakgare said the task team was expected to carry out a comprehensive review of sport development and competition in schools.

“They will also recommend suitable efficient and effective models for implementation of school sport programmes including competitions at local and international levels,” he said.

Assistant Minister of Basic Education, Nnaniki Makwinja, said her ministry was committed to physical exercise and hoped to see a return to school sport as soon as possible.

She stated that her ministry’s vision for sport was to have more physical exercise as the basis of healthy children with greater participation and inclusion of pupils.Makwinja indicated that sport had always been a co-curricular activity for psycho-motor development in schools, adding that Physical Education had been introduced as an examinable subject at both Junior Certificate Examination and Botswana General Certificate Secondary Examination levels.

She further added that curriculum reform was on-going and with a move towards outcome-based education, there would be a new pathway in the future for sports development as an academic discipline.

She further indicated that for many years, her ministry in collaboration with Botswana Primary School Sports Association and Botswana Secondary School Sports Association, had been running interschool sports activities.

The suspension of school sport, Makwinja said, was a allowed for comprehensive review and overhaul of the programme.

She said review of the programme would recommend the most suitable and sustainable way of running and managing youth sport development going forward. For her part, chairperson of the task team, Tapiwa Masunga, said their focus was development of a child through sport, where both sport and education would not be compromised.

She said they would propose a model and recommendations that would leave no child behind.

Masunga said the model and recommendations would provide opportunities for children to explore, develop and nurture talent through a systematic pathway. Ends