05 Nov 2013

The Botswana National Sports Commission Bill is expected to be presented for debate during the next sitting of Parliament.

President Lt. Gen. Seretse Khama Ian Khama said this in his State-of-the-Nation Address on November 4. He explained that the bill, which was intended to place sports on a sounder footing, had already been drafted.

“The bill seeks to establish a sports commission to provide greater clarity in the execution of the sporting mandates,” he told Parliament. He said it was important to develop and promote sport as the sector contributed to economic growth and diversification.

The President said the economy derived benefits from sport tourism over the past year when Botswana hosted a number of major sports events. Lt Gen. Khama expressed delight at the fact that Botswana sports people continued to make their mark in the international arena, with athletes Amantle Montsho and Nigel Amos winning international titles, while the number of professional footballers based abroad continues to increase.

“To build on such successes additional attention is paid to grassroots sports development, especially through the school system. In this connection, government has set aside prize money as a motivation for outstanding learner athletes,” said President Khama.

Regarding constituency sport tournaments, the President informed Parliament that they had experienced growth in participation. He said participation has grown from 28 476 at inception to 65 146 in July 2013.

“To date the programme has contributed to the expansion of sporting codes and talent identification, with a number of players having graduated from constituency tournament to mainstream league teams since its inception. Some teams have also utilized prize-money to sponsor players to study in different fields.” ENDS