R5 million project to transform Gauteng Sports facilities
Facilities identified to date are located across the province and include Randfontein.
The Gauteng Sports Confederation and the Gauteng Gambling Board announced on Wednesday their exciting new partnership and development programme to upgrade community sports facilities across the province to the tune of R5-million.
Facilities identified to date are located across the province and include Randfontein, Mogale City, Orange Farm, Lenasia, Vereeniging, Johannesburg, Lesedi, Sebokeng, Attridgeville, Eesterust, Katlehong and Boksburg among others.
The main objective of the project is to assist in the creation of sustainable sporting environments which will enable communities of Gauteng to participate in regular sporting activity and promote healthy, physically active lifestyles.
Several sites have already been identified and will be completed in the coming months for the benefit of clubs, schools and sports federations in communities across Gauteng.
“The focal point of the partnership is the identification; development, adaptation and delivery of the sport facilities to ensure the sites are safe, of an appropriate standard and available for community sport use in conjunction with the various sporting codes that will use the facilities. We are very excited about what this means for sport in the province,” said Gauteng Sports Confederation (GSC) President Barry Hendricks.
Engaging sport federations is critical for the successful implementation of the programme, as these federations will capacitate the clubs and schools to run sustainable sporting activities such as leagues and tournaments and coaching programmes. Along with the sports federations the local municipalities will pay a keys role in maintaining the facilities,” said Hendricks.
The upgrade programme started in March this year with consultations with the relevant stakeholders at various sites situated in the five districts that constitute the GSC, namely Johannesburg; Sedibeng; West Rand; Tshwane and Ekurhuleni.
“The project will be implemented in line with the Gauteng Gambling Board’s (GGB) sports facility development programme that aims to alleviate community hardship emanating from social and developmental challenges. Sport facilities and programmes encouraging healthy lifestyles and physical activity is one of the key drivers to promote social change,” said GGB chief operations officer Edward Lalumbe.
The project allows communities including youth, sport organisations and professionals to participate in sporting competitions and events at these facilities and this could contribute towards building a safe, caring, cohesive, prosperous, and physically active Gauteng,” he said.
Other stakeholders such as the MEC for Sport, the Gauteng Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation, Metropolitan, District and Local Municipalities, Sport Federations and the Gauteng Department of Education will also play key roles in the successful implementation of the programme.
Hendricks said that special attention would be given to ensure the involvement of youth, women, the disabled and the sporting fraternity in the upgrades. The projects will also seek to use local businesses wherever possible for the upgrades to ensure that the programmes also contributes to community development.
