PARLIAMENT - Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture says sport has contributed to the economic development of Botswana through diverse avenues over the last 10 years.

Mr Shaw Kgathi told Parliament Tuesday that sectors such as the construction industry, transport, tourism and hotel industry as well as the economy as a whole had received the largest share of business generated by sports events. He added that the spin off effects had also been pronounced on the education and health sectors.

Nevertheless, the minister regretted that there were no specific statistical evaluation tools to measure the impact of sport projects and programmes. He noted that the current statistical data analysis in the country was not yet disaggregated in a manner that would single out the contribution of sport projects and programmes.

However, he said sport had significantly contributed to the Vision 2016 pillar of a united and proud nation. He said many Batswana through the Zebras supporters club and the nation in general, demonstrated patriotic sentiments and attachment to their national teams.

Sport is a powerful tool for social mobilisation and inclusion, not only for sport events themselves but also for events linked to other development activities and objectives, the minister said. By virtue of their achievements and celebrity status in high performance sport, he said national football team players and other sportsmen and women in Botswana had served as powerful role models and highly effective advocates delivering critical prevention information. He added that they also encouraged people to speak openly and voluntarily undertake HIV/AIDS testing through the Zebras for Life - Test for Life programme where over 7 000 people were tested through 50 events throughout the country. With regard to social integration and mobilisation, the minister said many young people in Botswana had benefited from deliberate programmes targeting the out-of-school youth and young people in the rural constituencies.

The social integration and mobilisation tools included the constituency tournaments, junior sport programme which trained 950 teachers, Re ba Bona Ha which the minister said had since benefited 2 643 comprising football, volleyball, boxing and athletics. The programme, he said, had produced 54 players who are in the Under 20 national football team and 15 in the senior national teams. Mr Kgathi added that the introduction and the teaching of physical education in most schools in the country had enabled sport to contribute significantly to education.

He also noted that the programmes had managed to mobilise young people thus facilitating learning and teaching of basic social skills such as teamwork, fairness and organisational skills to take place. Sport is a tool for employment and economic growth. It generates direct and spinoff benefits in terms of employment, value addition and enhanced purchasing power, he said. He added that many young talented Batswana had and were still earning a living through their participation in sport. He noted that athletes like Amantle Montsho, Gable Garenamotse, Dipsy Selolwane and Pontsho Moloi earn their living through sport. The minister also noted that many other talented young men and women have benefited from the Botswana National Sports Council (BNSC) Elite scholarship fund to study and play sport abroad.

He underscored that the construction of the district stadia had also resulted in employment opportunities for many young people in the various districts.

He highlighted that sport increased the productivity of individuals and the overall labour force and thus reduced loss of individual and family earnings that arise from frequent hospital visits due to physical inactivity and obesity. Participation in health and fitness programmes reduces the national burden on health care and welfare systems, he said adding that the recent upsurge of fitness clubs in Gaborone, Francistown and other centres and the need for individuals to keep fit was an indication of its contribution in this regard.

Minister Kgathi was responding to a question asked by MP for Shoshong, Mr Phillip Makgalemele who wanted to know how sport had contributed to the economy over the last 10 years.

The Shoshong legislator also asked the minister to indicate sectors that had received the largest share of business generated by sport events and further state the contribution of rural area sport bodies. BOPA