the spotlight. This has come a cropper
in the past few weeks and may dwindle
further if the sentiments of corporate
firms are anything to go by.
What is amusing is the Government’s
knee-jerk response to the withdrawal of
sponsorship monies – a KES 500 million
contribution. It may seem like a sizeable
amount but it is a trickling for all the
sports bodies and organisations in need
of financial support from withdrawal of
sponsorship monies.
Quick aside: I have a bone to pick with
the national sports bodies and teams
on the challenge of procuring a single
sponsor for your sport. We have seen the
tragedy of singular partnerships in sport
that prove detrimental and cripple the
organisations activities’. It started with
the sourcing of media partnerships and
overall sponsorships for their sporting
disciplines.
How many sports federations maintain databas-
es of their players, sponsors and target audience
(fans)? What engagement is driven on a regu-
lar basis – beyond the fundraising and begging
bowl? Which was the last sports federation to
take its young discerning fans on a tour of its fa-
cilities and entice them to support their sport or
clubs?
New CS - New Wine in Old
Wine-skins? and maintenance of the projects and
programmes of the sports agencies and
estimated costs for every activity.
Coming through in the last days of January
were the appointments to the Cabinet that
included the new Cabinet Secretary for
Sports. With 2018, being a busy sporting
year for #TeamKenya, then the new office
If there is anything to learn from the bearer already does have his hands full.
activities in January, it is the need for a
number of corporate firms engaged in Starting off with the Winter Olympics in
your sport. An example to learn from is Pyeongyang – South Korea (yes Kenya is
the NBA, which has managed to rope in represented by the charming and affable
sponsors for most of its activities. Watch Sabrina Wanjiru being only the second
the NBA All-Star Game in the third Kenyan and a chosen few of Africans to
weekend of February and you will know participate in the Games held under wet
and chilly conditions on the icy slopes of
what I am talking about.
this city in Korea. 4 years since the enactment of the Sports
Act, nothing has happened yet – no
officials, no structure and still no monies to
boot. As a top sporting nation, we should
be serious with this Fund and it would
have come in handy with the reduction of
sponsorship monies.
It must not be lost to
most that it was in the
2015-16 IRB season
that Kenya’s Shu-
jaa won its first tro-
phy in the circuit in
Singapore. So what
happened? From the
change in manage-
ment to the on-and-
off relationships with
sponsors,mismanage-
ment and misappro-
priation of players’-
allowances; the sport
has been on free-fall.
92 MAL22/18 ISSUE
It was embarrassing to see a South Korean
company decide to pick Sabrina’s tab
for sponsorship to enable her train and
participate at the upcoming Winter Games.
Where are the myriad Kenyan companies’
and what other proposition would they
need to invest and brand such a rare gem?
Back to the CS’s matter, looking forward to
his agenda for sport for Kenya in the next
years. Beyond the political pronouncements
– including the stadia et al – the most
urgent matter is the setting up of the
National Sports Lottery Fund.
The Fund ought to form a centralised
system and basis for disbursement of
monies meant for sports development –
be it the physical infrastructure or the
sponsorship of teams especially those on
national duty.
Last year saw Kenya miss hosting the
CHAN (which ended up in Morocco –
and to add insult to injury their national
team ended up winning this year’s edition).
In total contradiction of the Government’s
pledge to sport, the country hosted the
World Athletics championships, which the
IAAF gave raving commendations (sic).
We can avoid such misadventures if the
Ministry and relevant sports bodies had
not only made the commitment to host
continental and international sports fetes
but also look towards investing for the
future.
This column has noted severally the need
for infrastructure for our sports disciplines
Sports Fund
and with the devolved functions, it is now
Drawing from the Sports Act, the Sports imperative for both national and local (read
Lottery Fund would receive an annual county) governments to make this happen.
sports programme at least 6 months
before commencement of every financial Success Stories of Sports Fund
year. This programme shall specify
and outline a comprehensive plan of When and if the Sports Lottery Fund
action for development, rehabilitation becomes operational, it can form the basis