The Ministry of Sports, Culture and Community Development will soon establish a sports council as the Government of Dominica continues to invest in the development of sports through its infrastructure and support of local athletes.
This is according to Senator the Hon. Oscar George, who represented the Minister of Sports Culture and Community Development at the opening of the inaugural hosting of the Dream 11 Nature Isle T-10 Cricket Championship last Sunday.
Hon. George says the Labour Party Government remains committed to the development of athletes and sports in Dominica.
“We have laid the platform for the development of sports. We remain very committed to the development of our athletes and this can be seen to the development of our athletes and this can be seen with all of the infrastructural developments taking place around Dominica. We are here in a beautiful stadium which is one of the hallmarks of this Government and not just the stadium or he forecourt which has recently been upgraded but we have seen a number of sporting facilities all across Dominica and this is showing the level of commitment that we put into the development of our athletes,” Hon. George stated.
As part its development initiatives, the Ministry of Sports is working on the establishment of a sports council and a trust fund aimed at assisting athletes and players in preparation for competitions.
“Some of you may be saying that it is not only about infrastructural development and I agree with you on that. What we have also sought to do is to develop a sports council, and that sports council will be responsible for the whole reform of the administration of our sports in Dominica. And of course this sports council will also lead to the emergence of a trust fund which our players like yourselves can tap into in the time of traveling. Because we all now the reality is that sometimes it may be very costly to partake in practice leading up to tournaments and this trust fund can be an avenue where you can draw down funds to prepare for upcoming tournaments,” the Minister noted.
Hon. George also spoke of the ongoing development of an indoor cricket facility currently being constructed at the Benjamin’s Park in Portsmouth. This facility will accommodate practice for players despite the weather conditions before competitions.
“We should not only invest in sports to prepare our teams for a competition. Preparations should be all year wrong because there is no way you can succeed as a cricketer when a competition is called. You have to be practicing every single day as much as you can. I am happy to say that at the Benjamin’s Park we also have a facility being developed to allow players to practice 24/7; an indoor facility which will help our players to practice even in the night time and that has been a significant challenge for us especially with the inclement weather conditions. So just having this facility in Portsmouth with indoor cricket matting and lights will help our players in brushing up their skills,” Hon. George added.