Stakeholders in Sport Start the Year with Successful Meeting
Arnos Vale, St. Vincent and the Grenadines - The Ministry of Tourism Sports and Culture and the National Sports Council successfully hosted the first meeting of Stakeholders in Sports for 2019 on Saturday February 16th. The meeting was chaired by Minister of Tourism Sports and Culture, the Honorable Cecil McKie who in his opening remarks declared 2019 as being a busy year for sports. Items on the agenda included the Sports Against Crime Initiative, Update on the 2018 National Sports Awards slated for March 16th 2019, Reports from Sporting Associations and presentation on antidoping by Dr. Lennox Adams.
Fourteen affiliated Sporting Association were represented and made presentations at the meeting on their plans and challenges. Associations expressed appreciation to the National Lotteries Authority for continued financial support and the National Sports Council for use of facilities as well as facilitating various duty free requests.
The Department of Physical Education and Sports presented their various programmes for Sports against crime and mechanism for collaboration between the department and the respective associations through the use of liaison personnel. The Department of Physical Education outlined that they received additional human resources in the form of 6 additional workers. These workers would aid in carrying out the various programs which the department promises to reach all corners of the country with activities everyone can participate in.
The Chairman and manager of the National Sports Council outlined plans for restorative works at the Arnos Vale Playing Field made possible by budget allocation to the Ministry of Tourism Sports and Culture. Chairman Branch also briefed the meeting about a proposal to establish a modern Sports Performance Centre that will eclipse most other like facilities in the English speaking Caribbean. The Sports performance centre will be twinned with a Full-sized gym and both facilities are earmarked for the Arnos Vale Complex.
The National Sports Council, National Lotteries Authority in collaboration with St. Vincent and the Grenadines Football Federation are also in the process of entering an agreement which will see three community fields lit. This initiative would allow for use of the identified facilities beyond sunset facilitating many persons who usually have a very short time after work to get in training or fitness work.
The meeting agreed to convene stakeholder’s meetings quarterly for 2019 and going forward given the heavy sporting agenda this year.
