19 Apr 2022

Youth have been encouraged to commercialise sports to improve their livelihood.

Assistant Minister of Youth Empowerment, Sports and Culture Development, Buti Billy who graced the Botsalano charity cup during the Easter Holidays said apart from creating employment, sport supported small businesses.

He encouraged teams to develop players at grassroots level and not to be discouraged by lack of sponsorship.

The assistant minister thus commended organisers, noting that sport was a unifying factor to fight crime and build friendships.

Billy said Botsalano charity cup came at a time when crime was increasing at an alarming rate which required interventions such as sports tournaments to keep away the youth from indulging in criminal activities.

He also explained that his ministry also contributed towards the tournament to make it a success, something which he said was part of government’s commitment to improving the lives of the youth for them to become independent.

Botsalano Charity cup, which is in its second edition, is the brainchild of Botsalano ward councillor, Ontiretse Bakaile, who established it in 2019 to keep the youth away from criminal activities.

Outlining the objectives of the tournament, Bakaile said the Francistown region had talented players who needed to be groomed to be in a position to represent the region in the premier league.

He said other sporting codes would be introduced in the future, especially ladies’ teams as the intention was to make the tournament grow bigger and better on yearly basis in order to attract sponsorship.

About 12 football teams and three netball teams from Botsalano ward took part in the tournament. ENDS