Africa-Press – Botswana. Government is not only investing millions annually in sport infrastructure, but also encouraging the private sector and donor agencies to do the same, says Minister of Youth, Gender, Sport and Culture, Tumiso Rakgare.
Speaking at the handing over of a karate dojo in Gaborone recently, Rakgare said safe, modern and technologically enabled infrastructure played a key role in competitive sport and thanked government of Japan for contributing to building the karate dojo.
He said on top of their initial contribution for the building they gave Botswana a grant of US$80 000 (over P1.1 million) for the second phase of the dojo hall.
The minister thanked Japan for the grant and informed them that the good performance of local karatekas on the international stage was due to their efforts.
He said the dojo hall was a reflection of the good bilateral relations and bond between the two nations.
The minister also commended Botswana National Sports Commission for contributing P500 000 for the completion of the project.
He added that government was committed to sport development as it would ensure that local athletes did not only produce good results in the international stage, but also take their rightful place as economic contributors to their families.
The minister pleaded with Botswana Karate Association (BOKA) to ensure that the building was well taken care of and used for the benefit of both the young and old karatekas.
Ohmori Setsuo, the ambassador of Japan to Botswana, said the first phase of the hall was constructed through a grant from his government in 2011, and that the extension project was constructed through the same grant to accommodate as many karatekas as possible.
The grant, he said, was intended to facilitate cultural exchanges and deepen friendship as well as mutual understanding between Japan and Botswana.
Furthermore, Setsuo noted that Vision 2036 stated that sports was an area that had the potential to contribute to sustainable economic development, adding that karate was conducted in many primary, junior and senior secondary schools.
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