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Temba Mliswa

Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter
LACK of funding has led to a slow take off of the Government’s ambitious programme on Community Sports and Recreation Club System. The programme, which was launched by Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko in June this year, needs a budget of $2,4 million to be implemented successfully across the country but only $150 000 has been availed from the Ministry of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture’s total budget of allocation of $1 million.

The acting permanent secretary in the ministry, Benson Martins Dube, said the project has been hamstrung by financial challenges when he gave oral evidence to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture this week.

“It has been running throughout the country. Of course, it is very low key because of funding and because of (lack of) personnel at ward level. As ministry we don’t have officers at ward level. That’s where our problem is, that’s where the challenge is. We want these clubs to be formed at grassroots level. But we have engaged officers from the Ministry of Youth to assist us in the formation of these clubs. As we speak, we do have statistics of how many clubs have been formed around the country,” said Dube.

Acting chairman of the portfolio committee Temba Mliswa professed ignorance on the programme and charged that the ministry did not engage the legislators when they got the programme underway.

“I want to talk about the Community Sports and Recreation Club System which you are talking about. We are not even aware of it. We don’t even know about it. I don’t know if the Members of Parliament are aware of it because we have not seen it in our constituencies and we don’t know of the launch that you are talking about and you want us to go and support something that we have not even seen. It could be on paper but I don’t know where it has been run. Of course, it’s being mentioned in terms of Sports Policy but where has it been implemented and how successful has it been. The idea is great but where has it been done?” said Mliswa.

Community Sports and Recreation Club System is the Government blueprint to tap talent from across the country by encouraging mass participation in organised events under the auspices of the ministry.

If implemented correctly, the ministry is looking to register at least 8 000 football clubs across the country, 8 000 athletics clubs and almost the same number for many disciplines, competing at ward level. The ministry is targeting 22 sporting disciplines for a start and each ward is expected to have an average four clubs for every discipline including in the previously marginalised areas.

The clubs should be able to compete internally in the ward and then feed to the districts up to the national level. The wards will also be married with established clubs in the Premier Soccer League, the National Rugby League, the National Cricket League and all other top leagues. Besides talent identification, the programme will also help in the selection of teams for the National Youth Games alongside the NAPH and NASH.