19 Aug 2024

In an endeavour to develop sports from the grassroots, Botswana Football Association (BFA) has secured P20 million to invest in infrastructure development in some regions.

BFA president, Maclean Letshwiti confirmed the funding in an interview, noting that they were constructing technical centres in areas of Maun, Kasane, Mahalapye and Kang respectively. 

“All these are part of football club and league development and we believe that the centres will help football administrators to identify talent and expose players to competitions,” he said.

Letshwiti and his entourage were in Maun to donate full football kits to eight football clubs affiliated to Nhabe Region Football Association (NRFA). 

He said the donation was meant to strengthen clubs and eventually improve the quality of sports in regions.

He was of the view that in order to successfully implement football development programmes, the necessary resources and infrastructure should be in place.

With the necessary support, Letshwiti believed that clubs would feel motivated and contribute to the growth and development of sports in the country. 

“We have realised that our clubs’ major concern is shortage of resources such as football and playing kits hence we are doing our best to meet their needs so that they can effectively operate,” he added.

Furthermore, he noted that the association had so far spent over P300 million towards supporting regional clubs across the country as the aim was to encourage all clubs to develop talent and stay in the game.

He said football  united the nation, developed individuals and gave a sense of belonging while at the same time, it served as a powerful tool of marketing the country.

He gave credit to football administrators for playing an important role of moulding the society through sports.

Letshwiti urged regional associations to work closely with the local authorities and other stakeholders in order to achieve development of sports particularly football.

He stated that football should not belong to BFA alone, adding that all stakeholders should understand and know what was happening in their regions.

He cited that currently, FIFA had a lot of development programmes which needed to be implemented through schools. He also called on the ministry of Youth, Gender, Sport and Culture to provide quality control and said they should ensure the associations produced results towards development of sports.

NRFA vice chairperson, Josphat Jackalas thanked BFA for recognising their efforts saying the donation would indeed motivate clubs to attract more talent and eventually produce stars in football.

He appreciated that BFA had been supportive to the region citing the establishment of grassroots centres in Maun and Shakawe. 

He also acknowledged that recently, the association donated footballs to clubs to meet their needs.

Deputy youth coordinator, Refilwe Banda urged clubs to appreciate the resources they received as they would help them push to greater heights. She said the ministry was supporting programmes geared towards unearthing talent, nurturing and developing it to produce champions who could compete internationally.

“Sports is all about passion and I encourage administrators to keep on going regardless of the challenges they face. The ministry will try best to assist where possible,” she said. Ends