Use African youth games to promote tourism
Lazarus Sauti
African countries should take advantage of hosting African youth games to
promote domestic tourism.
Tuelo Serufho believes hosting African youth games has the potential of
boosting revenue for the host country.
“Hosting African youth games has got the potential
of boosting the country’s tourism sector as both athletes and spectators would
require accommodation and catering services,” he said.
This means many
benefits will be reaped from hosting the games of this magnitude.
For any country, hosting
youth games is an incredible opportunity to give a significant boost to its
sporting structures.
Organisations will
benefit greatly from being exposed to the preparations for such an event,
venues will be refurbished and the local economy will receive a boost.
Botswana was awarded
the rights to host the 2nd African Youth Games from May 22nd
to 31st 2014 and its Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture, Shaw
Kgathi said the games would put his country on the world map.
Kgathi commented, “We
want to give young people the opportunity to explore their talents through
sports and the games will attest to that.”
He called on the
private sector to seize this opportunity and assist the country to deliver a
successful event.
Botswana’s Vice
President Ponatshego Kedikilwe is of the view that African governments should
avail resources to ensure that African youth games are organised successfully.
He also said, “Through
the Africa Youth Games our hope is that if young people can learn to respect
each other on the field of play, they may transmit this to the other parts of
their daily lives.”
Stakeholders in sports
should also take advantage of African youth games to promote other sporting
codes.
More so, organisers of
these games should use African Youth Games as platforms to develop
infrastructures - venues that attract a lot of interest from the public.
More so, they should
use these games as platforms of taking youth games to the people.
If the public learns about
sporting gurus in different sporting codes, it will remove the generally held
view that sport is for people who cannot do well at school.
Stakeholders in the
sporting industry should use African Youth Games to promote a healthy country
and taking the games to the people goes a long way in encouraging them to take
part in sport, not just for a living, but for keeping fit and healthy.
ANOCA President
Intendant General Lassana Palenfo says the games should also include a culture
and education programme.
“The Africa Youth Games
shall not only be limited to sports encounters for the young across the
continent but should also include a culture and education program. The Africa
youth games will be a catalyst power of sport to promote friendship, unity and
peace,” said Palenfo.
The African Youth Games is
an international multi-sport event for athletes aged 18
years and below drawn from 54 countries in the African continent held every four years to complement the
current All-Africa Games.
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