President Museveni has challenged the Minister of Education and Sports, who also doubles as the First Lady Janet Museveni, to plan properly for the sports sector if the country is to excel in sports.
The President was speaking during a luncheon he co-hosted with First Lady, for the Uganda Cranes and the SHE Cranes, at his country home in Rwakitura, Kiruhuura District.
He said even if resources were in place if there is no proper planning little would be achieved.
“We have to plan and invest in sports because it touches majority of Ugandans. We have 9.5 million children in primary, 2.5 in secondary and about 1 million in universities, technical colleges and other high institutions of learning and that is a big percentage of our population that can’t be ignored,” he said.
He further pledged that government will boost support to the sports sector, especially by putting in place the necessary infrastructure that meets international standards, so as to develop the sports industry in Uganda.
The President said although government has overtime been pre-occupied and dedicated most of her resources to crucial areas of the economy such as the road and electricity sectors, it was high time the country invested more resources to sectors such as sports which touch a big fraction of the population and have become a source of livelihood for many.
The President therefore asked the Education ministry to embark on a process of identifying talent from a number of disciplines and ensure that government takes them over and nurtures them.
He proposed that such talented people should be attached to government departments such as the army, the police and prisons so that they can easily be facilitated and given training time and facilities.
The President used the occasion to flag-off the Uganda Cranes team that will leave tomorrow to represent the country in the CHAN competitions that are taking place this month in Morocco.
Mrs. Janet Museveni, the Education and Sports minister, thanked the Uganda Cranes and the SHE Cranes for their performances over the years that have lifted the country’s name and flag high.
She, however, warned that the entry of big money into the sports sector poses a great danger to both the industry and sports personalities.
She advised young sportspeople against selling their souls to money and abandoning their country to seek citizenship of other countries that dangle money at them. She advised that they should always put God first in their engagements.
The president of Uganda Netball Federation, Susan Anek, decried the lack of the official training grounds for the SHE Cranes that meets the international standards.
She said that although the SHE Cranes are a giant and respected worldwide, they are unable to host international matches because they lack globally-accepted facilities.
