- Organisers say response of corporates is “delightful”
- Over 20 sponsors and partners have offered a variety of prizes
- Vunani praised for supporting sports “for the longest time”
GAZETTE REPORTER
Organisers of the inaugural Women Sports Awards have secured a sponsorship deal of P40000 from Vunani Fund Managers to boost their preparations for the event that is scheduled for 25 March in Gaborone.
The awards aim to celebrate women’s excellence in sports (athletes and administrators) across various sporting codes who put Botswana on the world map through their success on and off the field.
The Vunani sponsorship will mainly cover cash prizes for winner and other key elements of the event.
Singled out
In an exclusive interview with Gazette Sports, the CEO of Inside BW Women Sports, Kesego Okie, described the response of the corporate sector as delightful and singled out Vunani Fund Managers for special mention in that regard.
“Preparations are at an advanced stage with over 20 sponsors and partners who have offered a variety of prizes for winners of the first annual Botswana women sports awards,” she said. “Vunani has revived our hopes and their contribution will always be remembered because they have supported sports for the longest time.
“We have also partnered with other sports entities whose contributions will be announced in due course. These include Women and Sports Botswana, the Botswana National Sports Commission (BNSC), Botswana National Olympics Committee (BNOC) and Botswana Football Association (BFA).
Gender parity
“We are hopeful that the Department of Gender Affairs will also heed our call for sponsorship because these awards are aligned to their mandate at government level.”
She asserted that the sponsorship of women sports by these organisations reaffirms their commitment to gender parity as an important global issue. “The awards were really inspired by our core value at Inside BW Women Sports of contributing significantly to the growth of women sports in Botswana,” Okie noted.
Exceptional performance and talent
“We cannot achieve this without recognising and rewarding exceptional performance and talent. Female athletes and administrators continue to produce exceptional results, yet their recognition and reward is not commensurate with that. It is for this reason that we are happy with all those who show support for this initiative.
“The awards should inspire more women and girls to take up sports and motivate those already in there to improve their performance. Ultimately the awards should result in national teams that can compete better regionally and globally when the athletes and administrators are more motivated.”
Submission of entries and nominations are expected to close on 3 March for the adjudicators to begin and finish their task of selecting the winners in time for the 25 March event.