Latest update March 29th, 2024 12:59 AM
Mar 07, 2011 Sports
By Rawle Welch
President Bharrat Jagdeo in delivering the feature address at the National Sports Commission 2010 Sports Awards Ceremony on Friday evening admitted that much more support must be given to guarantee sports develop to an acceptable standard.
The Head of State in his remarks at the National Cultural Centre admonished sports administrators and some members of the Private Sector for not doing enough to support the development of sport, while he pointed to the Government’s inherited debt burden and the need to prioritise its spending as among the core reasons for its underfunding.
He conceded that sports have to be taken more seriously and given substantial financial support for it to develop and realise its true potential.
It was the first true assessment offered by a high ranking official for sometime and one that clearly contradicts the attempted positive expressions that emanate from other sources directly related to sports.
However, because of President Jagdeo’s known influence, could it be that his recognition of the problems that are currently hindering the development of sport has come too late in reference to his final months at the helm of Government?
One would hope that whoever makes up the next Government and those directly tasked with the responsibility to develop sports use the President’s remarks as a challenge to improve the performance level of our sportsmen and women thereby providing them with the opportunity to once again reclaim their status of prominence among Caribbean counterparts.
There is no doubt that our athletes are perhaps the most naturally gifted, but in a world where technology has taken centre stage, natural talent is no longer sufficient to gain international stardom, much more support is now needed.
The construction of state-of-the-art facilities, substantial financial support (like those given in Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago) to offset training and travelling expenses and other related assistance are all part of the support given by Governments to enable its athletes to gain the elite grade.
The President identified the problems and promised that his Government is now geared to fix them and is prepared to play a more significant role than before, while also expressing a desire to work with all the relevant stakeholders to secure the development of sports at every level.
According to previous reports from Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh Guyana’s economy managed to continue along a path of steady growth and this is so despite persistent difficulties in a few key sectors in addition to the protracted adverse movement in commodity prices and the effects of sliding currencies.
The Minister boasted that the economy remained resilient and even projected increased growth and these factors combined with significant debt write offs has afforded the Government the capacity to spend more on sport.
As we’ve seen in other economies, investment in sport could provide huge dividends so with monies available through Government’s prudent handling of its finances there is no reason why our athletes who sacrifice so much cannot experience a change in fortunes.
The Ministry of Sport and the National Sports Commission are the guardians of the monies set aside in the National Budget for allocation and these two entities must be able to show the benefits of their investments over a period.
The long delayed tabling of the National Sports Policy is perhaps the most significant impediment to sports development and many feel that if what the Minister of Sport and the Director of Sport said in previous disclosures about the contents of the imposing document are in fact correct, then a new paradigm shift is imminent and should augur well for the future of sports.
The President’s address was encouraging, but we’ve heard many of such in the past, all of which turned out to be rhetoric.
THIS IDIOT TELLING GUYANA WE HAVE NO SAY IN THE 50% PROFIT SHARING AGREEMENT WE HAVE WITH EXXON.
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