A number of sports associations have come out solidly in support of the government’s budgetary allocation for sports in 2023. On Monday, Senior Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh, disclosed that a record $4.3B will be allotted to sports during his 2023 national budget presentation in Parliament.
The sum of $4.3B is a significant increase, it almost doubles last year’s allocation of $2.2B and almost triples the 2021 allocation of $1.5B.
The Guyana Badminton Association, the Guyana Tennis Association, the Guyana Table Tennis Association , the Guyana Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation and the Guyana Rugby Football Union yesterday signaled their support for the budget.
“The Guyana Badminton Association (GBA) wishes to commend the 2023 national budget presented by the Hon. Minister of Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh. Our unanimous view is that this budget is comprehensive and adds another pillar to the construction of a strong sports sector by the present government,” the release from the GBA stated. “It is public knowledge that the fraternity has been injected with needed support and vigour from the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport under the leadership of the Hon. Charles Ramson Jr., who has created a new vision and direction for sport in Guyana. We anticipate that even though 2022 was an excellent year for local sport, the provisions in the budget will allow for an even better 2023,” the release ended.
The Guyana Tennis Association (GTA) also praised the budget allocation.
“The executive members of the Guyana Tennis Association (GTA) welcome the increase in funds allocated to sport in the 2023 national budget,” the release from the GTA stated.
“We are optimistic that our sport will expand to new areas this year with the continuous support of the National Sports Commission(NSC), through the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport,” the release added. “We commend the Honourable Minister of Culture, Youth, and Sport, Mr. Charles Ramson jnr., for his astute leadership and frequent engagements with the executive of the GTA to assess our needs, provide funding and create pathways to improve the performance of athletes, coaches, and the executive.
“The GTA looks forward to continued interaction with the Honourable Minister and the National Sports Commission and their executive,” the release ended.
President of the Guyana Table Tennis Association GTTA), Godfrey Munroe said that he was “heartened and enthused” by the budgetary allocation for the sports sector. “I am heartened and enthused by the 2023 budget considerations and allocation for the sports sector,” Munroe stated in a press release.
A vice-president of the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA), Munroe called the budget allocation “unprecedented” and a step in the right direction.
“It has shown the Government of Guyana’s commitment and consistency to providing the necessary resources for building the pillars and advancing the future prospects for our sporting success as a nation,” he charged.
Munroe praised the NSC triumvirate for their vision for sports.
“The Honourble Minister of Sport, Charles Ramson Jr., Director of Sports, Steve Ninvalle and Chairman of the National Sports Commission (Kashif Muhammed) and their team has truly taken on a very genuine, visionary, strategic, inclusionary, consultative, developmental and pragmatic approach to developing sports in Guyana which has been unprecedented,” he declared.
“I bestow these accolades and comments on budget 2023 and the foundations being laid in sports architecture on the basis of the evidence one can see, where the budget allocation rightly and systematically impacts the foundational pillars necessary for sporting success,” he declared.
“These are evident and exemplified in the realization and implementation of several key projects:
•Refurbishing of the Cliff Anderson Sports hall into world class facility.
•Upgrade and enhancement of the National Gymnasium.
•Upgrade and enhancement of the National Aquatic Centre.
•The building of a facility for table tennis and badminton.
•The building of a facility for squash
•The rehabilitation of several community centres/grounds which creates the framework for national sports organization, community’s clubs to build key networks regionally and have more places to have their activities, in addition to having more persons become actively involved and reengaged in sporting activities.
•The critical rollout and implementation of the nursery academy, and competition programmes in the twelve (12) core sports being piloted and supported by the Ministry of Culture Youth and sports and National Sports Commission which caters for the implementation and establishment of talent identification programmes nationally, coaches training and support, student athlete development and support, recreational sporting engagement activities all critical pillars.
•His Excellency, Dr. Irfaan Ali openly stated commitment to supporting the sporting sector in an unprecedented way, based on his understanding of the value of the sector to Guyana’s nation building.
“While understanding that this would not be the panacea which solves all our sporting needs as a nation, given the under investment in sports over the many years, I truly believe that the approach and choices being made by the Hon. Minister and his team based on consultative engagements, truly provides the catalyst and platform for the implementation of key scientific pillars proven for sustainable sporting success based on several proven models of sporting success and will in the medium to long term place us on a higher sporting trajectory and provide the dividends on investment,” said Munroe.
“I therefore wish to applaud the Government of Guyana, for taking on board the aspirations of national associations, athletes, coaches and administrators and prioritizing sport as an industry and ask members of our sporting fraternity to continue to work and support the vision,” he ended. The Guyana Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation, through its president, Keavon Bess, also commended the record allocation in Budget 2023.
“The bodybuilding federation has commended the government for ‘flexing’ its muscle and ‘lifting’ the profile of sport in Guyana since returning to ‘power,’” Bess wrote. According to Bess, every Guyanese citizen should be pleased with the upward trajectory that sports in Guyana is taking.
“With the expected allocation for sports and the anticipated direct injection of resources into the continued development of sports in Guyana, athletes, coaches, the general sports fraternity and every single Guyanese should be pleased with the developmental direction that Minister Charles Ramson Jr., and the Ministry of Culture Youth and Sport, is taking sports,” Bess stated.
He added that the ministry has been a pillar of support for the federation and its athletes.
“Over the past three years, the Guyana Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation, (GBBFF) has benefited significantly from the office of the Honourable Minister Charles Ramson Jr., the Ministry of Culture Youth and Sport and the Office of the Director of Sports,” he declared.
Bess continued, “With direct financial assistance over the said years, the GBBFF has been able to successfully host its annual Seniors Bodybuilding and Fitness Championship and also attend the annual Central America and Caribbean Bodybuilding and Fitness Championship.”
Bess concluded by reiterating his support for the budget for the sports sector and stated that he looks forward to once again partnering with the government for another successful year.
Meanwhile the Guyana Rugby Football Union (GRFU) also released a statement applauding the recent budget allocation for the sports sector. “The budget on a whole is very impressive, the amount of good that it would do cannot be overstated. Kudos to the Government of Guyana,” stated Ryan Dey, president of the GRFU.
“When it comes specifically to the budget for sports, I think I speak for all the sporting associations by saying its well needed and deserved. With the budget being almost double for 2023, we now can have a more positive outlook on the year ahead,” he declared.
“The new budgetary allocation coupled with the union’s current relationship with the National Sports Commission (NSC) speak volumes in terms of the commitment to our union and other sports associations. To meet any of the top brass in the NSC is easy as a phone call away and they’re always eager to listen to our issues, and I hope that this continues especially now that they have a more than enough to spend in helping sport’s development in the country.
“The direction that I want to see sports heading is the exact direction we are going. From the sports academy for children and the teens to the high performance centres for the elite senior sports men and women, our country will be on the map not only with oil and our eco-tourism but as one of the best sporting countries in this part of the world,” Dey concluded.
