BAA in P300k debt
Sport
Botswana Athletics Association (BAA) is in yet another financial fix-as pressure mounts on them to produce athletes’ funds belonging to the men and women’s 4X400m relays team the association allegedly misused.
In a desperate move, BAA wrote a letter to government (Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Cultural and Sports Development) asking for a bailout of up to P280 000. The money is part of incentives for the men and women 4X400m relay teams which performed well at the Bahamas World Relays earlier this year. The men’s team notched silver with the women finishing 6th. The silver medallist walked away with $30,000 (P300, 000) while the women’s team got $800 (P80, 000).
Information reaching WeekendSport suggests that the missing money was used in August by IAAF to pay for officials’ accommodation and meals at the World Championships. While this is seen as flouting of procedures, it is said this was done by the international body to rescue the situation and save the government some embarrassment at the global event
The standard practice according to those in the know is for the government to foot the bill for the whole entourage, save for national association leaders at the team whose needs are catered for by the IAAF. It is said, when travelling to the London held games, the team manager did not confirm whom the IAAF provided for and who was excluded from the list.
“The manager was supposed to see the quota of those catered for by the IAAF, unfortunately he forgot. IAAF catered only for the athletes and technical team and not officials as that was supposed to be the government’s responsibility. As it is a norm, IAAF didn’t send them back they just looked at our accounts and they diverted the athletes’ incentives to pay for the entourage’s accommodation and food for the duration of the event. That is why this happened. It is not like re jele madi a bana,” said an informant from the association.
The world championships spanned for nine days (5th -13th of August). The team manager was Moses Raphutshe.
The association, now under pressure from athletes who want their dues had to ask government to give them the money as initially government was supposed to incur the expenses. The government has yet to give the association a response and is however expected to do so in the near future. It is also said that BAA attempted to get IAAF to help them on the matter as well but the discussions did not bear any fruit. “In a nut shell they say there is no how they can help us because they saved us from embarrassment, hence we are pleading with government to bail us out,” said a source.
The association might have to buckle up as it may have to explain how it neglected to consult the competition’s manual before jetting off for the competitions. The association’s media liaison could not discuss the matter further with this paper. “It is still an internal matter once everything is sorted that’s when we will engage the public. For now let us put it to bed first.” The association received P1.1 million as a grant from government this year, an amount the association considers as “too low”. This publication could not establish how much the association received from IAAF before press time.
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The year 2022 witnessed unprecedented phenomena. Several Africans- Gotytom Gebreslase, Sharon Lokedi, Victor Kiplangat, Tamarit Tola and many others- swept the World’s marathons records.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the resulting control measures implemented in several countries, led to many high-level sports competitions being cancelled or shelved, the Dakar 2022 Youth Olympic Games was moved to 2026.
Founder and Executive Chairman, African Sports and Creative Institute, Will Mabiakop, says the inability to hold traditional and amateur sports events have had a serious effect on public health overall, including mental health, sparking a revolution whereby athletes began to talk more openly about stress, mental overload and performance anxiety.
“Africa is home to the fastest growing economies before the crisis, no longer on track to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). COVID-19 deepened interdependence between SDGs, making them harder to achieve, especially SDG 10 (reducing inequality) and SDG 5 (gender equality_ as the pandemic had a disproportionate impact on poorer countries, and heavier burdens (such as care work) fell to women.”
Mabiakop stresses that as policymakers contemplate actions to speed up recovery and build resilience, they must argue that sports and creative businesses should play a central feature in this effort.
“The sports economy worldwide is estimated at 5% of GDP, but only 0.5% in Africa. If exploited, Africa’s sports and creative industries can offer policymakers innovative solutions. Especially, as regards job creation, and providing employment to the 15 million people entering the job market annually.”
HOW CAN THE INDUSTRY DO THIS?
By leveraging the two-for-one concept: past studies shown that a 1% growth in the economy delivers a 2% job increment in this sector (these ratios are calculated using data from 48 African countries and adjusted to the reality of the sports economy in Africa by the authors). There are between 30 and 50 job types, in sports and creative industries, respectively. These jobs do not fade away with the first major shock.
Mabiakop indicated that policymakers can use these industries to tackle multiple crises- jobs, poverty, and climate risks. Sports diplomacy- defined as communication, representation and negotiation in or through the prism of sports- has proven effective in building inclusive and cohesive societies. Moreover, sports and the creative industry can support better mental health and well-being, both important for productivity.
“Policymakers can also be true to the game by leveraging culture and tradition to celebrate identity and reap commercial value in sports, textiles and jewelry. Creative sectors allow deeper connection with culture, are not easily copied and provide great economic potential.”
He said supporting grassroots sports has powerful distributional effects. “Fortunately, technology has made reaching wide audiences easier, generating higher rates of success when talent is discovered.”
However, Mabiakop held that potential pitfalls must be highlighted. “First avoid build it and they will come policies with infrastructures denuded from the rest of the ecosystem. Like the many sports stadiums left largely unused.”
“Policymakers must remain mindful of how these sectors move the needle in human capital development. Also, align the requisite public policies needed for progress from grassroots participation to professional sports, and even to international sporting events. They should also support investment instruments to render these sectors performant.”
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