Namibian Minister of Sports, Youth and National Service, H.E. Agnes Tjongarero, has emphasised the critical role of the African Games in developing athletes and underscored the need for African leaders to take the games seriously.

The Minister who was attending the 4^th Extraordinary Session of the Specialised Technical Committee on Youth, Culture and Sports (held on 9^th March) was speaking on the side lines of the ongoing 13th edition of the African Games being held in Accra, Ghana from 8-23 March.

Referring to Africa’s Agenda 2063, which envisions Africa as a strong and influential global player, H.E. Tjongarero highlighted the importance of elevating the African Games to a level comparable to major international sporting events.

She stated that "The most important part of the African Games is the development of athletes, because these are the games which give us and our athletes that opportunity to show how good they are, and we can prepare them for the Olympic Games and the Commonwealth Games and all other games which will be coming up."

The Minister pointed out that one of the challenges facing sports on the continent is the lack of commitment among both leaders and elite athletes regarding the African Games. She expressed her concern, saying, "As leaders, we don't take these games seriously; and as such, you will also find that the elite athletes don't also take them seriously. They jump when it comes to anything Europe or America or whatever. But when it's Africa games, you won't even find many of them."

She acknowledged the potential funding issue as a possible reason for the elite athletes' absence and stressed the need for African countries to allocate serious budgets for the African Games. "Our budgets must be serious about it. Whatever we are putting in for our athletes must be serious," she said.

Addressing the issue of anti-doping, the Minister stated Namibia's efforts to establish laws and regulations including the fact that Namibia has started working towards to putting in place laws and regulations. “Our anti-doping bill is set to go through the Attorney General and then the Cabinet and Parliament. Then we are done. That's where we are. The next thing is to make the rules work."

The Minister stated her strong belief in the transformative power of sports in achieving sustainable development and the importance of encouraging athletes to participate in the Games as a platform for professionalism and developing sports as an economic sector.

Expressing her aspirations for the future of the African Games, she revealed her desire to see the event reach the level of at least the Commonwealth Games and reiterated the need for funding stating, “We as the leaders of Africa, must put some budgets; as you know without money, you can't do anything. So, we must put money so that the athletes, when they win, they must get something better than what we are giving them at the moment; then the elite athletes will also come because they know there is something for them in this."

She urged leaders and athletes alike to embrace and invest in the potential that the African Games hold for the continent's sporting future.

About the African Games

The African Games is exclusively owned by the African Union and organised on behalf of its member states every 4 years and one year before the Olympics.

The African Games is a multi-disciplinary sporting event with over 20 sporting and brings together sports persons from across the continent who compete in various competitions including Olympic qualifiers.

This prestigious event showcases athletic talent, celebrates African cultural values and heritage, promotes solidarity, social cohesion and integration and promotes the values of Pan-Africanism. In addition, the African Games spotlight the importance of investment in sports as a driver of the economic development that will ensure Africa’s achieves the goals of Agenda 2063.

The African Union Sports Council (AUSC)is responsible for coordinating the organisation of the African Games on behalf of the African Union and partners with continental bodies including the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA) and the Association of Africa Sports in organising the Games.

Learn more about the mandates and statutes of the African Union Sports Council on https://au.int/en/treaties/statute-africa-sports-council

Article by Betha Madhomu, Habari Media (https://habarimedia.com) for the Information and Communication Directorate

For more information contact:

Janet Faith Adhiambo Ochieng | Communication Officer- Agenda 2063 | Information and Communication

Directorate | African Union Commission | E-mail: Ochiengj@Africa-union.org I Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

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