Zimpapers Logo

Minister Makhosini Hlongwane

Sikhumbuzo Moyo in Hwange
SPORT and Recreation Minister Makhosini Hlongwane has appealed to the Ministry of Finance to appreciate the important role sport plays in a nation.

He said a nation could find asylum in sport in the event of international isolation and it was therefore important to fund it adequately.

Hlongwane said despite presenting a formidable bid to Treasury aimed at changing the face of Zimbabwe through sport and recreation, his ministry was allocated far less than 10 percent of its bid.

“My budget for sport and recreation for the full year is $1.5 million, that is what I was given. I put a bid of $36 million so that we change the face of the country through sport, but what do we have appropriated, $1.5 million. The people at Ministry of Finance do not understand the role of sport in this country, that is the issue. They don’t understand that the reason Cuba has succeeded in the way it has is because once America placed an embargo, the only place where people or a country can take asylum in is sport and recreation,” said Hlongwane.

He said there was need for investment to be channelled towards sport and recreation, which includes the Zimbabwe National Youth Games.

“We have about 8 000 athletes in Matabeleland North and Bulawayo now whose hope for a better life is what we are doing here. Someone will, however, say we cannot give money to the Youth Games before we buy some other things, but it’s not supposed to be like that. It’s not supposed to be ‘I can’t do sport before I do the other things’, it can’t be like that. We must as a sport and recreation movement cause a change in attitude in our country that sport is no longer a pastime. It is our job to fight for our rights as a sector,” Hlongwane said.

The budget allocated to the Sport and Recreation Ministry is actually less than the initial Youth Games’ budget of $2 million.

Meanwhile, the acting permanent secretary in the Ministry of Sport and Recreation Benson Dube has urged local authorities to invest in sport and recreational facilities, saying the sector had a huge potential of contributing to wealth creation.

In his keynote address at the National Youth Games’ civic reception held at the Edmund Davies hall on Wednesday night, Dube said their recent tour of urban centres painted a bleak picture of the state of sporting facilities.

He said his ministry had recently deliberately rolled out the Community Sport and Recreation Club System to facilitate the formation of at least four community sports clubs per ward, but the programme could only be successful if there is buy in from local authorities through the provision of sporting facilities.

“I want to challenge the local authorities to ensure that whenever there is new construction of a residential place, there is space for sport and recreational activities. The current system where sport and recreational activities are not allocated space can only spell disaster for us in the near future in that most young people will end up engraining in anti-social behaviour, which tarnishes the image of our nation, especially in resort towns like Hwange and Victoria Falls,” said Dube.

He hailed the Hwange Town Board and Hwange Colliery Company for their financial and human capital support at the ongoing Youth Games.

“As government, we appreciate the support we have received from the Hwange Local Board as well as the Hwange Colliery Company, who ensured that the sporting facilities were renovated ahead of the games,” he said.