01 Feb 2022

Botswana National Sports Commission (BNSC) and the Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development are working around the clock to facilitate the return of school sport this year.

The last time pupils engaged in sport competitions organised by the Botswana Primary School Sport Association (BOPSSA) and Botswana Integrated Sport Association (BISA) was in 2019.

There was barely no sport activity for 18 months up to September 2021, the Botswana Games were also cancelled last year and the extent of damage to sport development agenda became apparent.

There were fears that such situation would result in Botswana either putting together weak national teams or failing to assemble some at all.

As part of his report last year, Botswana National Sports Commission, (BNSC) chief executive officer, Tuelo Serufho cautioned about the continued absence of organised sport in public schools, stating that it could have dire consequences for the country in future.

He pointed out that not only would Botswana’s international performance be affected, but there was also a high risk of young people indulging in bad behaviour.

Serufho cited the consumption of alcohol and other substances by young people due to lack of opportunities to expend their energies in meaningful pursuits that would keep them busy such as sport. 

The risk of obesity and some lifestyle diseases would also go unchecked, he added.

He resoundingly responded that he would remain committed to bringing school sport back on track this year.

“I can confirm that we’ve been engaging with our parent ministry (The Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development) and we are working around the clock to facilitate the return of school sport as early as possible this year,” he said.

Serufho said that given the amount of time and resources required, including the need to extensively consult with stakeholders, the format for 2022 would likely be different and not quite what was envisaged as per the report of the recent Task Team on School Sport.

“This year, we would most likely start on a smaller scale and pilot quite a few things. Some of the changes that we plan to introduce include ensuring that competitions are attended by both private and public schools, that school sport seamlessly aligns with the Botswana Games and some regional competitions so that cheaper and effective pathways are created for our student-athletes,” he said.

Serufho also said they would also take into consideration the qualifying age of out-of-school youth so that they got invited to partake in the school sport competitions.

Meanwhile, public schools have been credited with producing most of Botswana’s talented sports personalities in various fields such as athletics, boxing and football, while private schools on the other hand have excelled in basketball, tennis and swimming amongst others.

It will therefore be every interesting to see public and private schools competing together and Batswana youth being given an equal opportunity of being selected to national teams.

The development could bode well for Botswana sport given that private schools often have better facilities and other resources, which they could make available for the schools sport competitions. ENDS