03 Feb 2022

Debswana has announced a P9 million sponsorship to Botswana Athletics Association (BAA)  and P6 million sponsorship of the Re Ba Bona Ha sports development programme.

Speaking at the sponsorship launch in Gaborone yesterday, Debswana managing director, Lynette Armstrong, said the mining company was dedicated to uplifting lives in line with its ‘building forever aspirations’ and Botswana‘s Vision 2036.

She said Debswana was no stranger to supporting sports in Botswana, having sponsored various sporting activities, organisations and clubs for years.

“Through this support, we have seen the emergence of top athletes, who have gone on to represent their clubs and country in elite competitions,” she said.

In recent international tournaments, Armstrong said, athletes had shown that with proper support, they could compete at the highest level and deliver silverware.

“With the launch of this year’s sponsorship, we hope that our athletes will continue to do Botswana proud,” she said

She said Debswana would continue to support sport since it is not only a source of entertainment, but had positive social benefits such as improved fitness and health.

Armstrong said Debswana decided to sponsor Re Ba Bona Ha programme because it offered an all-inclusive sustainable development of youth.

On the sponsorship breakdown, she said the P9 million sponsorship would be spread over a three-year period from 2022 to 2024.

BAA would receive P 3 million annually for the next three years,.

As for Re Ba Bona Ha, the programme would receive P2 million each year for three years.

Minister of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development, Tumiso Rakgare, thanked Debswana for its contribution to sports growth.

“Today indeed marks a major milestone in the advancement of grassroots and elite sport development in Botswana as Debswana unveils its biggest ever sponsorship to the Re Ba Bona Ha programme and the largest ever sponsorship to the Botswana Athletics Association by any entity,” he said.

He said, through Debswana, Botswana had been able to ‘mine, ‘polish and cut’ talent and in the process enrich the nation’s fortunes in sport.

“I suppose your commitment to grassroots development stems from your understanding that just like in your industry, where the mining of diamonds is a very difficult and complicated but rewarding process, the same applies to sports development,” he said

The minister said research had shown that there were no shortcuts to success in sport.

Programmes such as Re Ba Bona Ha, Centres of Sport Excellence, Elite Scholarship Fund, he said, were essential for the provision of proper development paths for athletes.

“For that reason, we cannot help but celebrate the truly inspirational commitment of companies like Debswana, who drive the nation's young athletes to greater heights,” Rakgare added. BOPA