Africa-Press – Lesotho. Lesotho Cricket Association (LCA) has launched CRIO pilot project at local primary schools, starting with Tšekelo Primary School in Berea district, and will this week visit SOS Village in Quthing.
According to LCA Liaison Media Officer Clifford Molefe, this initiative is the pilot project aimed to deliver lesson plan which will introduce the fundamentals of betting, bowling and fielding as
well as the basic rules of the game more, especially for the children to familiarize themselves with the game from an early stage. He said it is funded by the International
Cricket Council (ICC) adding that it engages children into cricket from as early as 0 to 15 years of age. “Any available material can be used to play CRIO cricket unless it is harmful to children.
Apart from that, it is played with 9 cricket overs or less because it is intended for children. It can be played anywhere in a space where children can play with ease.
We encourage usage of the sand as a cricket pitch because there are no seas in the country but it is unfortunate that it is not possible now because we are experiencing
heavy rains in the country,” Molefe stated. He added that with this project, they are also providing a lot of cricket practice to Majaeng Primary school students
in Berea. He showed that also they will be in SOS Village Quthing on the 12th to 13th February presenting this idea to 100 children as an introductory program.
“After giving children some practice, we will leave them
with cricket equipment which comprise of balls, bats, stumps and stationery so that they will be able to learn easily. We have realized that most of the
children in the village are girls, so they will also be given sanitary towels,” he said. Asked about why LCA has chosen to introduce this idea to the selected schools, Molefe said the association is
mandated to bring services closer to the community. “There are no strings attached, after completing this work in these two districts, the program will
spread to all the remaining districts as the second phase. After completion we are expected to provide report to the ICC highlighting the challenges met and
the achievements which are highly relevant to cricket sport and after approval we will be given a chance to go ahead,” he enlightened. SOS Village Director Quthing
‘Makarabelo Mokhemisa in a separate interview said they are eager to have this
program in the village because it is going to help children from idling in the streets. “We have the exact number of children and more that LCA is requesting to participate in this program but children volunteer to participate,” she noted.
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